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FPMR 11.5 


RECORDS MANAGEMENT HANDBOOK 


Mechanizing Paperwork 


SOURCE 

DATA 


AUTOMATION 



1965 



GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION 

U 5, NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS SERVICE 

Xv 

OFFICE OF RECORDS MANA GEMENT .. 


Federal Stock Number 
7610 - 782-2670 









RECORDS MANAGEMENT HANDBOOKS are 
developed by the National Archives and Records Service 
as technical guides to reducing and simplifying paperwork. 


RECORDS MANAGEMENT HANDBOOKS: 

Managing correspondence: Plain Letters _ 1955 47 p. 

Managing correspondence: Form Letters _ 1954 33 p. 

Managing correspondence: Guide Letters _ 1955 23 p. 

Managing forms: Forms Analysis _ 1959 62 p. 

Managing forms: Forms Design _ 1960 89 p. 

Managing mail: Agency Mail Operations _ 1957 47 p. 

Managing current files: Protecting Vital Operating 

Records _ 1958 19 p. 

Managing current files: Files Operations _ *1964 76 p. 

Managing noncurrent files: Applying Records 

Schedules _ 1956 23 p. 

Managing noncurrent files: Federal Records Centers. 1954 25 p. 

Mechanizing paperwork: Source Data Automation . 1965 78 p. 

Mechanizing paperwork: Source Data Automation 

Systems __ 1963 150 p. 

Mechanizing paperwork: Source Data Automation 

Equipment Guide ___ 1963 120 p. 

General: Bibliography For Records Managers _ 1965 58 p. 















FOREWORD 


Source data automation generally involves capturing data in punched 
tape, edge-punched cards, or punched cards the first time it is tran¬ 
scribed, so its subsequent reproduction can be mechanical rather than 
manual. 

GSA’s source data automation program is aimed at mechanizing 
the thousands of small operations in the Federal Government, which 
are currently decentralized. In addition to the clerical cost savings 
SDA almost always makes possible, it brings several other advantages: 

• SDA provides the fundamentals for appreciating paperwork 

automation. This may eventually decrease the Government’s 
recurring shortage of knowledgeable computer specialists. 

• SDA increases the speed and accuracy of clerical processing and, 

as a result, improves service both internally and to the 
taxpayer. 

• SDA is, in some larger offices, the first step toward automated 

data processing. 

• The systems study which must be made as a prelude to SDA 

results in better operating methods. And, of course, SDA is 
not the goal—systems improvement is. 

This handbook is designed as an introduction to the subject. The 
reader will find, I am sure, that it does just that. 

















































































































TABLE OF CONTENTS 


I. INTRODUCTION Page 

Short History_ 1 

Definition of Terms_ 1 

The Languages of Source Data Auto¬ 
mation_ 2 

Information Capture_ 3 

Application of Source Data Automa¬ 
tion_ 4 

Benefits of Source Data Automation.. 4 

II. HOLES AS THE NATIVE LANGUAGE 

Tapes as Carriers_ 5 

The Physical Characteristics of 

Tape_ 5 

Number of Channels_ 5 

Advantages of Wide Tape_ 8 

Punched Cards as Carriers_ 9 

The Physical Characteristics of 

Punched Cards_ 9 

Code Structure_ 10 

Tags as Carriers- 

The Physical Characteristics of 

Tags_ 12 

Punched Code_ 13 

Processing Tags- 13 

Coupons as Carriers_ 13 

The Physical Characteristics of 

Coupons_ 14 

Perforating Code_ 14 

Processing Coupons- 15 

III. THE NATIVE LANGUAGES OF READ¬ 

ING MACHINES 

Dots as a Native Language- 17 

Bars as a Native Language- 18 

Code Structure_ 18 

Imprinting Code- 19 

Processing Data_ 20 

Selected Type Faces as a Native 

Language- 21 

Code Structure_ 21 

Processing Data_ 22 

Magnetic Ink as a Native Language. _ 24 

Code Structure_ 24 

Data Fields__ 24 

Processing Data_ 24 

IV. MODES OF CAPTURING DATA 


Deliberate Creation of a Native Lan¬ 


guage- 

Holes in Tapes_ 29 

Holes in Cards_ 29 

Holes in Tags- 31 

Perforations in Coupons- 31 

Dots_ 31 

Bars_ 31 

Selected Typefaces- 31 

Magnetic Ink- 32 


Byproduct Creation of a Native Lan- Page 

guage.... 32 

Holes in Tape_ 32 

Holes in Cards_ 35 

Holes in Tags_ 36 

Perforations in Coupons_ 38 

Dots_ 38 

Bars_ 38 

Selected Typefaces_ 39 

Magnetic Ink_ 40 

Conversion Creation of a Native Lan¬ 
guage_ 40 

V. MACHINEABLE FUNCTIONS 

What Functions_ 45 

Performing Functions with Punched 

Paper Tape_ 46 

Interpreting_ 46 

Verifying_ 46 

Writing_ 47 

Duplicating_ 48 

Arranging_ 48 

Selecting_ 48 

Merging_ 49 

Matching_ 49 

Counting- 49 

Correlating Statistics_ 49 

Computing- 50 

Communicating_ 51 

Performing Functions with Punched 

Cards_ 52 

Interpreting- 52 

Verifying- 52 

Writing_ 54 

Duplicating_ 55 

Arranging- 57 

Selecting- 57 

Merging_ 59 

Matching_ 59 

Correlating Statistics_ 59 

Counting- 59 

Computing- 60 

Communicating- 62 

VI. FINDING AND DEVELOPING APPLI¬ 

CATIONS 

What is Systems Analysis- 63 

Finding the Area to Study- 63 

What to Look For- 63 

Where to Look- 67 

Conducting the Study- 69 

A Total Systems Study- 71 

Data Analysis_ 71 

Reports Evaluation- 72 

Developing the New System- 73 

Considering a Specialty Form- 74 

Selecting the Medium- 76 

Selecting Specific Equipment- 76 

Do’s and Don’ts of Automation- 77 


V 





































































































* 



























I. INTRODUCTION 


During the last 50 years the American economy 
has become increasingly dependent upon paper¬ 
work. The ratio of clerical workers, in the 
process, has gone from 1 in 40 of the total 
work force at the beginning of the century to 
1 in 6 at the present. 

Paperwork processing in this country now 
costs about $40 billion a year for clerical 
salaries and for office tools—everything from 
typists, punchcard operators, and bookkeepers 
to pencils, paper, typewriters, adding machines, 
duplicators, and items of electronic hardware. 
Of this grand total, the annual Federal outlay 
is nearing $5 billion. 

Today about 20 percent of the paperwork 
in the Federal Government has been auto¬ 
mated in one way or another. An account 
of this would tend to be divided into three 
parts: (1) automated data processing, (2) 
automated information storage and retrieval, 
and (3) source data automation. This hand¬ 
book is concerned with the last, and with the 
other two only when a controlling interrelation 
exists. 

SHORT HISTORY 

Jean Emile Baudot provided the possibility 
for source data automation when he built a 
paper-tape punch and reader in the 1870’s. 
About the same time, two other important 
machines were invented. William Burroughs, 
a bank clerk, invented the first commercially 
practical adding machine. Christopher Sholes 
invented the first commercially practical type¬ 
writer. A little later, William Hollerith and 
Charles Powers, realizing the value of holes as 
a language carrier, devised punchcards as we 
know them today. 

In those inventions, source data auto¬ 
mation machines had their genesis. The add¬ 
ing machine provided the basis for mechanical 
mathematics; i.e., addition, multiplication (re¬ 
peat addition), subtraction, and division (re¬ 
peat subtraction). The typewriter provided 
the basis for printing. When converted to 
type segments on tabulators, it provided 
higher speed printing. 


Source data automation has progressed 
much more slowly than other technological 
improvements. The reason was probably the 
reluctance of executives to accept change. It 
was difficult to sell the idea that a machine 
could accurately produce, in 1 day’s time, 
four to five times more work than a clerk 
could produce manually. 

In 1912, John Wahl combined the adding 
machine with the typewriter to produce the 
first descriptive accounting machine. This 
made it possible, for the first time, to type 
item descriptions and to compute account 
balances in a single operation, rather than two 
separate operations. 

The first front-carriage-feed accounting 
machine was marketed in 1928. This machine 
made it possible to produce, in one writing, 
multiple forms of differing content. No longer 
was it necessary to prepare statements, ledgers, 
and journals in three independent steps. 
By means of carbon paper, all could be created 
in one operation. The first accounting machine 
synchronized with a paper-tape punch was 
developed in 1935. The first paper-tape type¬ 
writer was introduced in the 1940’s as an 
automatic letterwriting machine. 

Although punched-card tabulating ma¬ 
chines had been available for several decades, 
it must be noted that more improvements, 
more new models, and more new applications 
have been introduced in the last decade than 
in all preceding years. Thus it was in the 
early 1950’s that “Integrated Data Processing” 
began to be forcefully and dramatically demon¬ 
strated by the equipment industry. 

DEFINITIONS OF TERMS 

The term “Integrated Data Processing” was 
first coined to describe systems involving paper¬ 
work, mechanized from initiation to completion. 
Integrated Data Processing was then applied to 
punched-card systems and, to a certain extent, 
to computer systems. Finally, it became so 
closely related to large-scale systems as to take 
its place with Electronic Data Processing (EDP) 
and Automatic Data Processing (ADP). In 


1 


the process the term lost its original meaning of 
source paperwork handling. The technique, 
therefore, had to gain its own stature and a 
more descriptive term. The term chosen was 
“Source Data Automation” (SDA). Here is 
the logic of the newer term: 


Source—Where data begins 
Data—Required information 
Automation—In machine language for 
machine-to-machine proc¬ 
essing 


Thus the basic principle of capturing 
information in a usable medium, at the point 
of origin, for further processing, introduces a 
number of concepts which require further 
explanation. 

Source 

The beginning of a paperwork cycle is the 
source. This can be anywhere—in different 
offices, in a different city, across town, or right 
in the same office. Regardless of the physical 
location, the source is always the beginning 
of the paperwork cycle. 

Data 

Information is always data. It can be on a 
form. It can be part of a form. It can be on 
several related or unrelated forms. Data are 
always recorded on some medium in some 
manner. The recording may be merely an “X” 
or a checkmark in a box. It may be hand¬ 
written. It may be mechanically transcribed. 
Data, for source data automation purposes, 
must have three basic characteristics. First, 
it must be of a reasonably repetitive nature. 
Second, it must be machinable. Third, it must 
exist in sufficient volume to justify the smallest 
of automated equipments. 

THE LANGUAGES OF SOURCE 
DATA AUTOMATION 

Much harm has been done to serious considera¬ 
tion of the technique of source data automa¬ 
tion by casual use of the two words “common 
language.” The origin of the phrase is not too 
hard to pinpoint. Early in the formative 
period of automation, the only language medium 
which could be understood by all the available 


machines of that period was the five-channel 
punched paper tape. While five-channel paper 
tape is still the only carrier accepted by many 
final processing machines today, the limitations 
of this carrier have virtually eliminated it as a 
true common language. 

Native Language 

Every available automatic machine on today’s 
market operates on a language. It is true the 
language of one machine may be recognized by 
the machine of a different manufacturer, but 
the fact still remains that each machine has 
its own language built into it by its makers. 
The languages of machines, therefore, are not 
common languages but are the native languages 
of specific machines. In source data automa¬ 
tion one should speak of a machine’s native 
language and forget, for the time being at least, 
the phrase “common language.” In illustration 
of this point, here are some of the basic native 
languages and carriers of our common systems 
and machines: 

• Communications machines use five-chan¬ 

nel punched paper tape. 

• Paper tape typewriters use six-, seven-, 

and eight-channel paper tape. 

• Punched-card systems use a language 

expressed in round or rectangular 

holes punched into equal-size cards. 

• Scanning machines use special type 

fonts and magnetic ink impressions. 

The requirement for different machines to 
talk to each other, in some systems, has led 
to the development of language-converting 
machines. These will be described in detail 
later. The only point to be remembered here 
is that regardless of the native language of 
any machine, it can be converted into the 
native language of another machine. 

The native language machines in source 
data automation need the abilities to— 

• Create data, including simple calculations 

when required during the paperwork 

cycle. 

• Accept and record additional data as 

it occurs in a paperwork system. 

• Convert data to another machinable 

form, if conversion is required in a 

paperwork system. 


2 



• Produce, as byproducts, data for the 

next step in a paperwork cycle. 

• Integrate dissimilar machines into a 

single coordinated mechanized sys¬ 
tem. 

• Communicate with the more complex 

machines, such as computers. 

Common Language 

The native language impressed on the carriers 
discussed above is a code pattern formed on 
the carrier by the recording machine. These 
code patterns, when read by the “mother” 
machine, result in the creation of an electronic 
pulse that causes the machine to react in 
accordance with the instruction indicated by 
that pulse. 

The most common everyday illustration 
of pulse control is the dial telephone. When a 
number is dialed, a small contact under the 
dial makes and breaks a circuit the number of 
times called for by the dialed number. The 
circuit make-and-break causes a stepping relay 
to move to the numeric position of the number. 
When a person finishes his complete number 
dialing, the encoded positions of the stepping 
relays are decoded into a single pulse. This 
causes the called telephone to be connected 
with the calling phone and to ring. All source 
data machines operate on the encoding-decoding 
principle, and decoded pulses cause— 


Reading 

Calculating 

Writing 

Recording 

Controlling 

Verifying 

Communicating 

Language Conversion 


The electric pulse is identical for a given 
code pattern of a given carrier, whether trans¬ 
mitted over long distances or short distances— 

From Washington, D.C., to San Francisco, 
Calif., via wire or wireless. 

From one machine in a room to another 
machine in the same room. 

From one end of a machine to the other 
end. 

INFORMATION CAPTURE 

When Jean Emile Baudot invented the native 
language and the machine to “automate” 
sending messages over the telegraph wire, 


there was only one mode of capturing data, the 
deliberate creation of the punched paper 
tape by the manual depression of the keys of 
a punching device. But, with today’s modern 
equipment, three major modes are available 
for capturing the selected data in the native 
language of the machines to be used: 

• Deliberate creation. 

• Byproduct creation. 

• Conversion creation. 

The machinery may be capable of per¬ 
forming in more than one mode. For example, 
a machine which punches a tape as a primary 
function may also be capable of producing a 
second byproduct tape in the same or different 
native language. (See ch. IV.) 

Source data automation attempts to obvi¬ 
ate person-to-person processing by substituting 
machine-to-machine, as shown in chapter V. 
Most of the machines involved have been 
pictured and described in the National Archives 
and Records Service handbook titled Source 
Data Automation Equipment Guide, which 
should be used to supplement this handbook. 
(Federal Stock No. 7610-059-2773) 

Machine-to-machine processing came of age 
with the advent of converters. These ma¬ 
chines can translate or convert any native 
language into any other native language. They 
can, for example, convert the native language of 
the punched tape typewriter to the native 
language of the punched card, if such conver¬ 
sion is required for completing the paperwork 
cycle. Some of the common converters are: 

Paper Tape 

• Any number of channels of paper 

tape to any other number of 

channels of paper tape. 

• Any variety of paper tape to any 

variety of punched card. 

• Any variety of paper tape to any 

variety of magnetic tape. 

• Any variety of magnetic tape to any 

number of channels of paper tape. 

Punched Card 

• Any variety of punched card to any 

other variety of punched card. 

• Any variety of punched card to any 

number of channels of paper tape. 

• Any variety of punched card to any 

variety of magnetic tape. 


T27-995 


3 




Tag 

• Any variety of punched tag to any 

variety of punched card. 

• Any variety of punched tag to any 

variety of paper tape. 

APPLICATION OF SOURCE DATA 
AUTOMATION 

Finding a paperwork function or type of opera¬ 
tion in which some Federal agency has not 
applied the principles of source data automatic 
would be difficult. 

The potential applications are limited 
principally by the imagination of the person who 
studies an existing paperwork cycle. Suc¬ 
cessful applications have been developed in 
property and supply management, personnel 
management and statistics, production plan¬ 
ning and control, work measurement and report 
ing, fiscal management and accounting, as well 
as in the major substantive functions performed 
in Federal agencies. Over 70 representative 
applications are contained in the National 
Archives and Records Service handbook SDA 
Systems, that supplements this handbook. 
(Federal Stock No. 7610-985-7272) 

Source data automation can bring the 
advantages of mechanical or electronic opera¬ 
tion to all levels of an organization. It can 
ease the paperwork burden in the small office as 
well as in the large one involved in voluminous 
and complicated tasks. It can be developed— 

• For any size operation. 

• In stages, a step at a time. 

• For utilizing dissimilar office machines 

in “teams.” 


• As a direct means for communication 
with the more complex electronic 
computer. 

BENEFITS OF SOURCE DATA 
AUTOMATION 

New achievements are possible for the office 
with source data automation. It can help 
integrate communications. To management it 
provides the ability to systematize operations. 
It supports forecasting with methodically de¬ 
veloped data. Such data are not the result 
of mere coordination of clerical tasks; it is 
the result of thorough dovetailing of proce¬ 
dures and functions. This integration often 
crosses department, agency, or bureau organi¬ 
zation lines. It makes the work of all easier, 
quicker, and more effective. 

Tangible benefits include— 

Savings —Labor costs, the greatest part 
of paperwork expense, are reduced. 

Accuracy —Errors are decreased or elim¬ 
inated, as automatic production is more 
reliable than manual. 

Speed —Processing time in the complete 
paperwork cycle is reduced, as auto¬ 
matic production is faster than manual. 

Better Information —More efficient sys¬ 
tems are possible since data recorded 
at birth was used for all processing 
steps. 

Better Decisions —Fast and accurate 
decisions are based on up-to-date infor¬ 
mation. 


4 


II. HOLES AS THE NATIVE LANGUAGE 


When holes are used to obtain the common 
language pulse, mentioned in the introductory 
chapter, four types of carriers are available 
for source data automation applications: 

• TAPES 

• CARDS 

• TAGS 

• COUPONS 

Each carrier uses its own code structure. 
Differences in code structure occur among 
similar pieces of equipment, using the same 
carrier, when made by different manufacturers. 

TAPES AS CARRIERS 

Paper tapes were used as early as the 1870’s 
for sending messages over a wire and for playing 
back the message. Glossaries define many 
kinds of tape—read-in, readout, feed, by¬ 
product, master, program, chadless. Any ap¬ 
preciation of what source data automation can 
do depends on an understanding of tape. 

The Physical Characteristics of Tape 

Width. In a set of the different tapes used 
by the various machines which operate from 
or produce tapes, the differences in width would 


be noted at once. The basic widths are as 
follows: 

l Yi « inch_5-channel communications 

equipment. 

y% inch_ _ 6- and 7-channel equip¬ 

ment. 

1 inch_ 7- and 8-channel equip¬ 

ment. 

3 inches to 8% Edge punched cards (wide 
inches. tape) for 5-, 6-, 7, or 8- 

channel equipment. 


Color. Punched paper tapes were once pro¬ 
duced in one color—light beige. Today, as an 
aid to identifying different tape contents or 
distinguishing security classification, tapes can 
be produced in many colors. Popular colors 
include beige, pink, blue, green, yellow, and 
white. 

Oiliness. Originally all tapes used in the 
communications industry were impregnated 


with oil to give added strength to the paper and 
increase the resistance to wear. This oil- 
impregnated tape served the purpose until 
someone tried to file the tape away for a period 
of time—perhaps with some other papers. 
Then problems appeared, as the tape bled oil 
on any absorbent material it touched. Today 
many nonbleeding tapes are manufactured that 
have the same durability and resistance to wear 
as the bleeding varieties. They are impreg¬ 
nated with an oil that will not transfer to other 
papers they might contact. If bleeding tapes 
are filed for any period of time, special filing 
arrangements must be provided to protect other 
papers. 

Durability. Several different weights (thick¬ 
nesses) of tape are available today, the thin¬ 
nest at the lowest prices and increasing in cost 
as the thickness increases. For extreme dura¬ 
bility Mylar tapes are also available, two layers 
of paper with a layer of Mylar plastic between 
them. Mylar tape has the highest cost per 
roll. Selection of tape for durability character¬ 
istics should be based on— 

• Value of the tape content. 

• Number of times tapes will be used. 

• Number of handlings of the tape. 

Forms of Tapes. The tape originally used by 
the communications industry was available 
only in rolls. Since the tape used in source 
data automation may be filed for long periods 
of time between uses, some means of filing, 
other than as a roll, is frequently desirable. 
Tapes can be purchased today in flat folds or 
fanfolds of varying length. Almost any length 
fold can be ordered. Wide tape (edge punched 
cards) is available as a single card for a unit 
record of a predetermined length or as a con¬ 
tinuous fanfold for records of unknown length. 
(See fig. 1.) 

Number of Channels 

A specific location in the space across the width 
of a tape is called a channel or level of punching. 
Coding is accomplished through punching a 
hole or series of holes in specific channels. Each 


5 





WIDE TAPE (Edge Punched Cards) 



Fig. 1 


pattern of holes represents a character, digit, or 
function of the machine. 

There are four different levels of punching 
available. (See fig. 2.) The maximum num¬ 
ber of code patterns which can be punched 
into the various levels of paper tape is expressed 
by a single mathematical formula: 

5- channel tape—2 5 —32 different patterns. 

6- channel tape—2 6 —64 different patterns. 


7- channel tape—2 7 —128 different patterns. 

8- channel tape—2 8 —256 different patterns. 


TAPE PUNCHING LEVELS 



8 Channel 6 & 7 Channel 5 Channel 


Fig. 2 

Since 26 alphabetic characters, supple¬ 
mented by 10 numeric digits, are used to trans¬ 
mit the English language, a bit of hasty 
mathematics shows that the 5-channel tape is 
inadequate, 32 possibilities as against 36 needed. 

To overcome the shortage of codes, the 
communications industry resorts to a tech¬ 
nique called precedent punching. One of the 
combinations is reserved to signal the machine 
to shift to “uppercase,” which includes punc- 


STANDARD TELECOMMUNICATIONS 


CODE FOR 5 CHANNEL TAPE 


-?: $ 3 * & £ 8 t ( ) . , 9 0 I 4 » 5 7 ; 2 / 6 " | ^ 
ABCDEFGH I JKLMNOPQR STUVWXYZe I 


1 

c 


□□□ 




• 

• 




nr 

n 


• 


• 


□nnn 

■ 

□□ 

□ 



2 

□ 


• 




• 


• 

• 

• 

• 




n 

□ 

• 



• 

• 

• 



□□□ 



FEED —► 
HOLES 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• ! 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

□ 

□ 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• • • 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

3 



• 



¥ 


□□ 

■ 

¥ 


¥ 

¥ 


n 

□ 


¥ 


I 

¥ 



¥ 


• 




4 


□ 

• 

¥ 


• 

¥ 



• 

• 


• 

• 

¥ 



¥ 




• 




• 

• 


¥ 


5 


□ 





• 

• 




¥ 

• 


• 

¥ 

• 



¥ 


• 

□□□ 

¥ 


K 

• 





Fig. 3 


6 



































































































ADDRESS PORTION OF A TYPICAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS MESSAGE TAPE 



| Carriage Return 

1 Line Advance 

I Letters 

—i 

O 

X 

Z 

| Space 

a 

O 

LU 

I Carriage Return 

1 Line Advance 

1 Figures 


CO 

[Space 

| Letters 

on 

>- 

LU 

I Space 

tn 

i— 

O' 

LU 

LU 

1— 

| Carriage Return 

1 Line Advance 






• 





• 


• 



• 


• 




• 

• 


• 



• 

• 




Channel 1 • 



• 


• 









• 

• 

• 




• 






m 





• 

Channel 2 
































Feed Holes 







• 

• 

• 









• 



• 


• 

• 








Channel 3 


• 



• 

• 


• 


• 

• 


• 


• 





• 






• 




• 


Channel 4 






• 

• 




• 




• 






• 




• 




• 



Channel 5 


Fig. 4 


tuation, numerals, and special symbols. An¬ 
other combination is reserved to signal the 
machine to shift to “lowercase,” which con¬ 
tains the alphabetic characters in all capitals. 
Still other combinations are reserved for space, 
line feed, and carriage return. The code 
structure (combinations of holes) used by the 
communications industry is illustrated in fig¬ 
ure 3. 

With the precedent punching technique, 
the communications industry increased the 
coding capacity of 5-channel tape to 52 possible 
combinations for characters, numbers, and 
punctuation marks—still leaving 6 code com¬ 
binations to control certain machine functions. 
The items marked FIGS and LETTERS in 
figure 3 are the precedent punching codes for 
numeric or alphabetic entries. 

To send a message via the telecommuni¬ 
cations code, the operator first punches the 
desired precedent code. Then the operator 
punches one or more carriage returns and line 
advances to get blank paper in front of the 
keys of the receiver and to position the carriage 
at the beginning of a line. The operator then 
proceeds to punchout the message. Figure 4 
illustrates the address portion of a typical 
message punched in tape. Figure 5 illustrates 
how this address would appear when typed by 
the receiver on a telecommunications circuit. 


The five-channel code, the same basic 
code developed by Jean Emile Baudot in 1870, 
satisfied the communications industry—and 
still satisfies it today. When an attempt was 
made to apply the tape-producing typewriter 

ADDRESS AS TYPED BY THE 
TELECOMMUNICATIONS RECEIVER 
FROM THE ABOVE TAPE 



NOTE: The numerals 4 and 3 are identical 
in code structure to the alphabetical 
characters R and E. They would have 
been received as letters except that 
they had been preceded by the preced¬ 
ent punch for FIGURES. Also, note 
that all alphabetical characters are 
capital letters. 

Fig. 5 


7 















































to other operations, however, it was discovered 
that some things the typewriter can do could 
not be done by the telegraph equipment. 
The message was limited to capital letters, 
for example. 

Modern source data automation obviously 
requires more than the 32 basic codes provided 
by the 5-channel tape. Capital and lower¬ 
case alphabet, punctuation, special characters, 
and machine control codes are needed. Tapes 
with six, seven, and eight channels meet these 
requirements. No standard arrangement for 
the code designations exists. Figure 6 illus¬ 
trates the most commonly used eight-channel 
paper-tape code configurations. 

Advantages of Wide Tape 

Short bits of information, used repetitively, 
are hard to file and find in rolls of tape. Inter¬ 
pretation, that is translation, onto the tape of 
the meaning of the holes in the tape is done by 
very few machines—thus data are blind in 
most tapes. Relevant data, other than that 
to be processed by machine, cannot be made 
part of the tape. 

Wide tape overcomes most of these diffi¬ 
culties. Wide tapes were designed to store 
coded information, with additional space al¬ 
lowed for written information. They are 
easily filed in conventional card-filing equip¬ 
ment. Wide tapes may be of almost any size, 
style, or shape—provided sufficient space is 
available along the edge to contain the five-, 
six-, seven-, or eight-channel code structure 
to be used. Samples of wide tapes are shown 
in figure 7. 

Some of the advantages of wide tapes over 
rolled or folded narrow tapes are: 

• Small bits of data can be found more 

readily. 

• Small bits of data can be filed more 

easily. 

• Interpretation (translation of the 

punched holes) can be printed. 

• Identification of the contents by filing 

or locating symbols can be included. 

• Instructions for use, and other pertinent 

handling information, can be placed 

on wide tape. 


• Relevant data, other than that to be 

“machined,” can be written on wide 
tape. 

• Wide tape can be filed “visually” in any 

visible records system for quicker filing 
and finding. 


COMMON EIGHT CHANNEL PAPER TYPE 
CODE CONFIGURATION 


CARD 8 Channel AUTOMATED 


PUNCH 

STANDARD CHANNEL NUMBERS 

TYPEWRITER 

8 

7 

6 

5 

4 


3 

2 

1 

0 (ZERO) 



6 







IZEROI 0 - 1 

1 









1 

1 - 

2 








2 


2 - @ 

3 




5 




2 

1 

3-# 

4 







3 



4 S 

5 




5 



3 


1 

5 - V. 

6 




5 



3 

2 


6 ■ ' 

7 







3 

2 

1 

7-8. 

8 





4 





8 - • 

9 




5 

4 




1 

9 - 1 

A 


7 

6 






1 

a - A 

B 


7 

6 





3 


b B 

c 


7 

6 

5 




2 

1 

c-C 

D 


7 

6 




3 



d - D 

E 


7 

6 

5 



3 


1 

e • E 

F 


7 

6 

5 



3 

2 


f - F 

G 


7 

6 




3 

2 

1 

g - G 

H 


7 

6 


4 





h - H 

1 


7 

6 

5 

4 




1 

i - 1 

j 


7 


5 





1 

j -j 

K 


7 


5 




2 


k - K 

L 


7 






7 

1 

1 - L 

M 


7 


5 



3 



m - M 

N 


7 





3 


1 

n - N 

o 


7 





3 

2 


o - O 

p 


7 


5 



3 

2 

1 

P • P 

o 


7 


5 

4 





q-Q 

R 


7 



4 




1 

r - R 

s 



6 

5 




2 


J S 

T 



6 





2 

1 

f - T 

U 



6 

5 



3 



u - U 

V 



6 




3 


1 

v - V 

w 



6 




3 

: 


w - W 

X 



6 

5 



3 

2 

1 

x - X 

Y 



6 

5 

4 





y - Y 

Z 



6 


4 




1 

i -Z 

SPACE 




5 






SPACE 

_ 


7 












6 

5 





1 

/-? 

# 





4 



2 

1 

STOP 

5 


7 


i 

4 



2 

5 


, 



6 

5 

4 



2 

1 

, - , 



7 

6 


4 



2 

1 


@ 




5 

4 


3 




% 



6 


4 


3 






7 



4 


3 



PUNCH ON 

□ 


7 

6 

5 

4 


3 



UPPER CASE 

& 


7 

6 

5 






. - : 

SKIP 



6 

5 

4 


3 

2 


TAB 

END CARD 1 





4 


3 

2 


CONTROL 

END CARD 2 



6 


4 


3 

2 

1 

PUNCH OFF 

COR. tab 




5 

4 


3 

2 

1 

DATA SELECTOR (AUX. 3) 

ERROR 


7 



4 


3 

2 

1 

FORM FEED |AUX. L) 

PI - 1 




5 

4 



2 



PI - 2 


7 



4 



2 



PI - 3 



6 


4 



2 


BACK SPACE 

PI - 4 



6 

5 

4 


3 


1 


PI - 5 


7 

6 


4 


3 


1 


PI - 6 


7 


5 

4 


3 


1 

ADDRESS IDEN. (AUX. J) 

PI - 7 





4 


3 


1 


SP- 1 


7 

6 

5 

4 



2 


LOWER CASt 

SP - 2 


7 

6 


4 


3 

2 



CR 


7 


5 

4 


3 

2 



TAPE FEED 


7 

6 

5 

J 


3 

2 

1 

TAPE FEED 

END LINE 

8 









CAR. RET. 


EL 

X 

0| CH 

8 


4 

2 

1 



Fig. 6 


8 


























































































REPRESENTATIVE WIDE TAPES 





Fig. 7 


Wide tapes of the conventional 3- by 7-inch 
fanfold variety are supplied in boxes of 1,000 
each. They may be torn apart into unit 
records of one or more 7-inch lengths, to fit 
the job requirements. They may be cut apart 
by a precision cutter which removes one code 
position at the beginning of each series of cards. 
Wide tapes of almost any dimension, limited 
in size only by use and filing requirements, 
can also be obtained. These cut cards must 
have the prepunched feed holes needed for 
source data automation equipment. 

PUNCHED CARDS AS CARRIERS 

The first punchcard equipment made its 
appearance around 1890. At that time the 
equipment was designed for the production of 
numeric statistics only. Sensing a hole punched 
in a card actuated dials or counters which 
recorded selected statistical factors. 

For the next 25 to 30 years improvements 
were introduced and usage gradually widened. 
Printing machines were produced to write 
the statistical data. Alphabetic information 
was added to the card and to the printouts. 
Counters were added to permit limited mathe¬ 
matical operations. 


Today, punched cards are employed in a 
multiplicity of operations of a numeric, alpha¬ 
betic, or alphanumeric nature. New capabili¬ 
ties are constantly being added to already 
existing machines, or completely new machines 
are being marketed. Speeds have increased 
over the course of time, and more prompt and 
timely reporting is achievable. 

The Physical Characteristics of Cards 

Size. A set of the different cards used by the 
various machines which operate from or produce 
cards includes the following sizes: 

7% inches wide by 3% inches long— 

Used for the 80-column International 
Business Machines Corp. card and 
the 90-column cards of the Sperry 
Rand Corp. (formerly Remington 
Rand, Inc.). 

Any width less than 7% by 3 % inches long. 
Used as a detachable coupon from 
either the International Business 
Machines or the Sperry Rand card. 

Color. The most common color is white. 
For distinguishing different decks of cards, 


9 





















































for identifying special-purpose cards, and for 
visual spot checking, cards may be obtained 
in almost any color; white, salmon, yellow, 
green, blue, and red predominate. In addition, 
striped cards can be procured which have a 
narrow band or stripe of color across the top 
edge of the card. Combining stripes and card 
colors affords all needed color distinction. 
Shape of Holes. The code structure used 
by the International Business Machines Corp. 
is punched into 80-column cards in rectangular 
holes. Sperry Rand expresses code structure 
in round holes. Because of differences in the 
code structure and in the internal mechanisms of 
the various machines, a card punched with 
rectangular holes cannot normally be used in 
a round hole machine, or the reverse. 

Fields. In planning the use of any card, the 
number of columns available in the card is 
divided into fields. A field is a column or 
group of columns reserved to record a certain 
kind of alphabetic or numeric data. For 
example, columns 1 through 23 could be reserved 
for employee names; columns 24 through 30 for 
employee number. 

Card Stock. The holes in the cards must be 
sensed by the machines through which they 
pass. This is accomplished— 

• Electrically with cards containing rec¬ 

tangular holes. 

• Mechanically with cards containing 

round holes. 

• Photoelectrically with cards containing 

round holes. 

In the electrical process, figure 8, the card 
passes over a metal roller and under a series of 
metal brushes. As a metal brush feels a hole, 
contact is made with the roller, thus completing 
an electrical circuit. Completing the circuit 
sends a pulse to tell the machine what function 
to perform. The pulse is identified in the 
equipment by— 

• Location of the brush; that is, the column 

of the card. 

• Timing of the pulse corresponding to the 

position of the hole; that is, the 4 

position. 

Since the contact between the brush and 
the roller is important to operate the machine, 
a contact must not be made unless there is a 


hole in the card. Thus, cards must be non¬ 
electrical conducting and free of carbon spots. 

In the mechanical process, metal pins pass 
through the holes in a card and activate me¬ 
chanical devices to perform a specified function; 
the metal pins are stopped by the card when 
there is no hole. 

In the photoelectrical process, cards are 
light sensed. Cards pass over a bank of photo¬ 
electric cells above which is positioned a bank 
of lights. If a hole exists in the card, light is 
passed and the machine is actuated. 

Thickness of the card is critical in all 
processes, as each machine must be able to 
separate one card from the next card rapidly. 
Thus all card stock is of a uniform thickness, 
adequate to provide strength and durability. 

Code Structure 

The native languages of the 80- and 90-column 
cards are different. Since the number of col¬ 
umns in the card is interrelated to the code 
structure of these native languages, each card 
column capacity must be discussed separately. 
80-Column Card. From left to right, columns 
of the card are numbered 1 through 80. Each 
column contains 12 possible punching positions, 
or locations for holes. The punching positions 
are identified, starting from the bottom of the 
card with 9 and proceeding back through 0 in 
numerical regression. The 11th punching posi¬ 
tion, known to the trade as the 11 or X position, 
is located above the 0 position. The 12th 
punching position, known as the 12 or R posi¬ 
tion, is located above the 11th. Positions 1 
through 9 are known as digit positions; X and 
R as zone positions; and 0 as a digit or zone 
position depending upon its use. 

In the native language, a digit is repre¬ 
sented by punching a single hole in the appro¬ 
priate digit position in a column of the card. 
The alphabet is represented by punching a hole 
in a zone position and a digit position in a 
single column of the card. Symbols are repre¬ 
sented by combinations of zone and digit posi¬ 
tion punches in a single column of the card. 
Figure 9 illustrates the code structure, the 
native language of the 80-column card. 

Zone punches (X and R positions), without 
any accompanying digit position punch, are 
also frequently used for card identification or 
for control of certain machine functions. 


10 



90-Column Card. The card is first divided 
into two halves horizontally. The upper half 
contains columns 1 through 45, from left to 
right. The lower half contains columns 46 
through 90, from left to right. 

Each column, in each half of the card, has 
six possible punching positions—locations for 
a hole. The punching positions are identified, 
starting with the bottom of each column, as the 
9, 7, 5, 3, 1, and 0 positions. 

The code structure, native language, is 
punched into the cards as follows: 


NUMERIC INFORMATION 

Odd-Numbered Digits and Zero — 

A single hole in the position of the number 
desired. 

Even-Numbered Digits — 

A hole in the 9 position and a second hole 
in the position one number lower than 
the number desired. Hence holes in the 
“9” and “1” positions give “2,” and 
holes in the “9” and “5” positions give 
“ 6 .” 


ALPHABETIC INFORMATION 

A combination of two or three holes in a 
single column gives an alphabetic charac¬ 
ter. Ten characters use 2-hole com¬ 
binations, and the remaining 16 use 3-hole 
combinations. 


Figure 10 illustrates the code structure, 
the native language of the 90-column card. 


CODE STRUCTURE FOR 80 COLUMN PUNCHED CARD 


Upper Right 
Cornercut 


0123456769 ^ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVUXYZ 
| 12 Punch 7nno IIIIIIIH 


Zone 

I 1 1 or x Punch Punches 




I I I 
I I I 


0 0 0 0 0 0 0■ 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 o|o 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 llllllllo 0 0 0 0 0 0 0| 0 0 0 |010 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

1 2 3 4 3 • 7 I I 10 II 12 13 14 15 II 17 II II 20 21 22 23 24 23 21 27 21 21 30 31 32 J3 34 35 36 37 31 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 41 41» 51 52 S3 34 55 5t 57 51 0 0 6112 0 M 65 K 17 0 0 70 71 72 73 74 75 71 77 71 71 0 

iiiiiii|miiii|iiiiiiiiiiiiii|iiiiiiii|iiiiiimmimmiiiiiiin|miiiiiiti 
2222222122222222 | 22222222222222 | 22222222 | 2222222|2222222222222222222222222222222 
3 3 3 3 3 3 3|3 3 3 3 3 1 3 3 3 |3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 1 3 3 3 3|l 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 13 3 J 3 3 3 3 13 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 mi 3333333333333 

4444444|4444444444|44444444444444l44444444|4444444|444444444444444444 ■■||4 4 4 4 4 4 4 

£ Digit Punches 

5555555|55555555555|5555r 



6 6 6 6 6 6 6|6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 S|6 6 6 
7777777|7777777777777|77 
8 8 8 8 8 8 818 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 818 


5555555555|55555555|5555555|5555555555555555555555555555 

6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 S |6 6 6 6 6 6 S 6| 8 6 6 6 6 6 6 |6 6 6 6 8 6 6 6 6 666666666666666GS.fi 

7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 1 7 11 > t I H |? 7 7 7 7 7 717 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 ; 7 7 7.7 7 

8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 l|i 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 18 8 8 8 8 8 8 18 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 ||||8 8||||8 8 8 8 8 8 1 


9999999|999999999999999|99999999999999|99999999|9999999|999999999999999999999999 

1 2 3 4 5 I 7 I I 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 II 11 70 21 22 23 24175 26 77 2»2IJO 31 32 33 341S>6J?»J9 0 4. 4*«3 44«64|4?4|4|0ilVtfS436S6 57 5t3l0lll2Ut400|7 00l|7l/2 73 74 7S7*777|710 


■■Column Numbers L^ e J £ 


J I Special I 


C 

3 

n 

IT 

3* 

to 


J 


Punches 


-The Alphabet 1 


Characters 


Fig. 9 


727-995 O—65— 3 


11 





















CODE STRUCTURE FOR 90 COLUMN PUNCHED CARD 


The Alphabet 




6 H1J K ^V4° p 0 R s T MW 2 

|Tr. 2 V7|V' 2 ' 2 '* 


^1 23456789 

"•r Vi # • 7 _ 7 v v .7 ~r t 2 -.i v v* v 7 •• 

3« >« 3 4 3 4 3 4 < U 3« 3 4 3 4 3 4 3 4 J 4 3 4 3 4 3 4 3 4 3 4 3 4 • • 3 4 3 4 • +#• < >« 3 4 ••• S< f i, it' 4 • * 4 

*6 *6 3 S 3 S 3 S 5s 3 S 3 S ## 3 S 6 S S s 3 S 6, 3 S 6 S 3 S ' • ** • ’* • ’« 5 * ’* 

7. Tg 7, 7, 7, 7, 7g 7g 7, 7„ ££ 7g 7 # 7, 7 8 7„ 7g 7 e 7, 7„ $ 7, 7g 

9*999 £ 9 9 9 9 9 9 ^ 9 9 9 9 A 9 9 9 9 


f 


76 7. 7. 7, 7, 7 e 7 8 •••• 7 « •• ? * • 

” “ tt ; 'i» ‘ '” t : t 9 — 


Digit 


A I B 2 ( 


5 F 6 6 7 H 8 I 9 


^3 ^4 ^5 

7“ 7 V V 7 Vf 7 V ~t~ 7 V V* 7 "if "7 >2 <2 '2 '2 '2 '2 '2 '2 '2 '2 '2 

l 4 3 4 3 4 3 4 3 4 S 4 3 4 S 4 l 4 3 4 ! 4 S 4 3 4 3 4 l 4 ! 4 J 4 3 4 3 t ### # *« J « 5 « »* 5 4 ^ ’ 4 # 5 « 3 4 3 4 S 4 ! 4 J 4 3 , 3 . 3 , 3 , 3 4 S , 3 , 5 4 


__Punches 

'2 '2 '2 '2 '2 '2 *2 *2 *2 >2 '2 '2 '2 '2 


3 S »6 3 « *6 *« »* *6 *6 »6 3 S »6 »6 *6 H # 5 6 Q *6 *6 »6 # »6 V £ 5 6 5 6 »6 s 6 £ 3 S 5 * »6 5 6 H H »6 H »6 »6 S 6 >6 s 6 5 * 

7* 7, tp 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7. 7, 7, 7 , £ 7, 7, 7* 7, 7, 7, 7 , %%% % 7, 7, 7. 7, 7, 7, 7. 7. 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7. 

9 99.99999#99#999099^^999#909999999 99*9*6 


9 9 9 9 

A.y. 


1 Column Numbers 


Fig. 10 


TAGS AS CARRIERS 

The newest method of source data automation 
is the print-punch tag attached to many items 
in modern department stores. The tag con¬ 
tains a series of small holes, the native language, 
as well as printed information identifying the 
user and the item to which the tag is attached. 

The tag may be a single part (one stub) or 
several parts (two or more detachable stubs), 
depending upon the procedures developed for 
the user. The holes in the tag represent 
selected data which the user requires for auto¬ 
mated operations. 

Although most of the applications for 
print-punch tags have been in the merchandising 
of material from a store to a customer, appli¬ 
cations are not limited to this field. Inventory 
control, manufacturing records, production 
control, material inspection, and piecework pay¬ 
roll have successfully utilized tags as the 
medium of source data automation. Print- 
punch tags are particularly useful when small 
size or ability to withstand heavy abuse are 
important factors. 

The Physical Characteristics of Tags 

Size. A set of the different tags used by the 
various machines which operate from or produce 
tags would include— 



Dimensions of 

Number of 


tag (in inches) 

tags to a set 

Small. 

. . 2.2 by 1. 

2 to 6. 

Medium... 

. . 2.7 by 1. 

1 to 10. 

Large. 

. . 3.2 by 1. 

1 to 10. 


Color. Most tags are produced in white. 
Since most tags are printed with at least the 
identification (name and address) of the user, 
colored stripes of all varieties can be obtained 
for color-coding purposes. 

Stock. Tags must withstand frequent 
handlings by customers, store employees, or 
production workers. They must frequently 
be re-marked to reflect price adjustments. 
Accordingly tags are produced on card stock 
13 points in thickness (0.0013 inch thick). 
Extra heavy tags of 15 points thickness can 
be procured to meet abnormal conditions. 
Tag stock can be coated with or impregnated 
with various waxes or chemicals. Such coating 
permits the tags to be attached to items of 
manufacture, for production control, while 
these items are being processed through the 
assembly and production lines. 

Capacity. Capacity of a tag is measured in 
two areas—printing and punching. Maximum 


12 























capacities are as follows: 



Digits of information 



Punching Printing 


Small tag. 

20 

37 

Medium tag. . . 

25 

47 

Large tag. 

31 

59 


If tags are to be converted to cards or 
tape, and data are to be added which is not 
punched into the tag, the first space from the 
left of the tag must be reserved as a control 
column. 

Printing is accomplished by setting dials 
on equipment developed to print and encode 
the tags simultaneously. Items which are 
encoded in the punched holes of the tag may be 
printed or not printed, as determined by needs 
of the user. If the user is willing to forego 
using 10 digits of printed information on the 
tag, provision can be made to substitute 
logotype printing (slugs of type containing 
fixed descriptions) of such things as fiber content 
and fiber name. 

Figure 11 is an illustration of upper and 
lower line printing on the large tag. The 
amount of data that can be included on a tag 
by well-planned coding is noteworthy. 

LARGE PRINT-PUNCH TAG 
WITH UPPER & LOWER LINE PRINTING 

Pl5678901.^5678990 " ' " 

® - - '»»» < '—"-"TT* • • •' * M kiiaiwf. — 

•••rlJIVENTOR'Y E= 

• PLATEHOLDER • BK324 


Fig. 11 

Punched Code 

The code structure, native language, for 
recording selected data in the tag is similar to 
the five-channel code structure used in the 
communications industry (described under the 
discussion of tape). Five small holes, in a 
vertical line, represent a single digit of data. 
Punching is numeric only. 


Processing Tags 

Within the maximum capacity of the tag, all 
identifying data known about a unit of mer¬ 
chandise can be punched in five-channel code. 
This recording is done to permit picking up 
these data after the item has been sold. At 
present, no known equipment will directly 
process from print-punch tags. Conversion to 
another of the native languages, punched 
cards, paper tape, or magnetic tape, is necessary. 
Data encoded in the print-punch tag may be 
processed by— 

• Conversion to punched card, paper tape, 

or magnetic tape by an off-line con¬ 
verter. 

• Conversion to paper tape or magnetic 

tape at the time of sale by using a 
point-of-sale recorder. Supplemen¬ 
tary data, such as salesperson, date, 
or price, known only at the time of 
sale may be added to the tape simul¬ 
taneously. 

Since the print-punch tag may be multi¬ 
part, several conversions may be necessary in 
a paperwork cycle, each conversion serving a 
specific purpose in the overall procedure. 
Figure 12 illustrates a multipart tag which 
could require two conversion operations. 

COUPONS AS CARRIERS 

The average American homeowner, car owner, 
or installment buyer is aware of the perforated 
coupon as a method of source data automation. 
The amounts, dates, and payment numbers, 
which are perforated in the coupon, are read¬ 
able. 

The perforated coupon has been in use 
for a long time. It has been common in banks, 
finance companies, mortgage companies, and 
department stores for many years. Recent 
improvements have expanded the potential of 
coupons as a means of source data automation. 
These improvements now deserve attention in 
a number of areas of Government paperwork. 

Perforations, it must be remembered, are 
in the native language of the human eye, 
since they form readable characters and figures. 
Today machines are designed to read and 
translate these data into a native machine 
language for processing the coupon. 


13 















MULTI-PART TAG 

FOR MANUFACTURING CONTROL OF APPLIANCES 


This stub remains on appliance after 
shipping and serves as customer 
reference information. 


This stub detached when appliance 
is shipped and is used as record of 
shipment. 


This stub detached at completion of 
production operation and is used as 
record of production. 


Fig. 12 


- 

COMPANY NAME 


■ 

• V *' 

• • • • • • • v * 



• • • 



• • • • •• 

• 

• 

845 32 • 1255 

8 


SERIAL NO. DATE 

MODEL 

■I — 

— — — — — — ■■■MM — — 

— — — — WM 


SHIPPING 


■ 

• • • • 



••••• •• ••• 



• • • 



# • • • • • 

• 

• 

845 32 • 1255 

8 


SERIAL NO. DATE 

MODEL 

■1 — 

______ —mmmmm — — 

- m 


PRODUCTION 


■ 

• • • • 



••••• •• ••• 



• • • 



• • • • • • 

• 

• 

845 32 • 1255 

8 


SERIAL NO. DATE 

MODEL 


The Physical Characteristics 
of Coupons 

Size. A representative set of the different 
coupons used would show wide divergence in 
size. Any size paper adequate to contain 
perforations read by the human eye can be 
processed through coupon-reading machines. 
Figure 13 shows a typical coupon. 

Methods also have been developed for 
including selected data, not readable to the 
human eye, in the coupon in a native machine 
language. Capacity of the coupon to store 
data has been increased. 

Coupon Stock. Almost any weight of paper, 
suited to the purpose, can be used as a coupon. 
It is well to remember, however, that books 
containing multiple coupons are all perforated 
simultaneously. Thus, a heavier weight paper 
may reduce the number of coupons produced 
in one perforating operation. The average per¬ 
forator can generate 20 coupons in 1 operation. 

Perforating Code 

The in-line code of the five-channel variety 
similar to the native language of the communi¬ 


cations industry can be included in the coupon. 
In the financial world, for example, the five- 
channel code can contain selected data of 
interest to the financier but not readable by 
the borrower. Figure 14 illustrates some in¬ 
line five-channel coding as contained in a 
coupon. 

To permit the machines to read numeric 
information—information perforated for the 


A TYPICAL COUPON 

(about 1/4 actual size) 



Fig. 13 


14 

























PERFORATED IN-LINE CODING 

FIVE CHANNEL 




^-HUMAN EYE PERFORATIONS 

Five Channel-" 

• N ••• •• 


in-line coding 



--* SPROCKET HOLE 


Fig. 14 



human eye—the five-channel in-line code pat¬ 
tern is spread into three adjoining columns 
instead of a single vertical column. Figure 15 
illustrates the method of accomplishing this 
spread into three columns. The complete 
digital pattern for three-column coding—the 
native language of the perforated coupon—is 
illustrated in figure 16. For visual reading, 
seven channels are perforated. However, for 
mechanical reading, only five of the channels 
are utilized. 

Comparing the digit reading pattern (three- 
column code) with the in-line reading pattern 
(five-channel code) indicates that very little 
difference exists. As a result, coupon-reading 
equipment can perform dual reading tasks, 
switching from one reading pattern to the 
other upon receipt of a switching symbol. This 
symbol serves in the same manner as the 


precedent symbol for the tape machines. 

Figure 17 illustrates a technique for com¬ 
bining into one set of perforations the code 
for both the three-column reading and the 
five-channel reading. 

Processing Coupons 

Sorters are available to place randomly re¬ 
ceived coupons in account number order for 
processing. Readers are available to sense 
the native language of the coupon and emit 
the pulse for translation of the holes into the 
native language of paper tape, punched card, 
or magnetic tape. During processing, some 
additional data may be encoded in-line, five- 
channel code, onto the coupon by some model 
readers. Beyond the sorting and reading, 
all other processing is done after conversion 
to another native language. 


READING PATTERN COMPARISON BETWEEN 5 CHANNEL 
PUNCHED TAPE AND PERFORATED CHARACTERS 


• 

1 

+ + + 

+ + • 

+ # + 

/ 

: 

• 


• + + 


• 

• 


+ + • 





+ + + 


/ 

• 

_ 1 

i 

• 


• i 


5 Channel Tape 
Code with all 
Channels punched 


Perforated Punch 
Pattern with all 
Channels 
punched 


5 Channel Code 
with Numeral 7 



Perforated 
Numeral 7 
as 3 Column 
Reader reads it 



Perforated 
Numeral 7 
as Human Eye 
reads it 


Fig. 15 


15 


















PERFORATED CHARACTER CODES 
(3 COLUMN READER) 


o 

• o 

o 

• o 

• 

• • 

• 

o 

o 

• 

• • 

o 

• • 

• • • 

o • o 

o 

• o 

o 

• o 

o o 

o 

• 

# o 

• 

o® 

o 

O® 

• 

o 

o 

• 

o o 

• 

oo 

OO® 

• o® 

• 

o® 

• 

o® 

o o 

o 

o®o 

o 

o • 

o®o 

• 

o 

• 

• 

®o 

• 

oo 

o®o 

0(9)0 

• 

o • 

• 

o • 

o®o 

o 

• o 

o 

• o 

o 

o • 

® 

• 

• 

o 

o • 


®oo 

®0» 

o 

• • 

®o# 

(•)• 

• 

o 

• o 

• 

oo 

• 

O® 

o 

O® 

• 

o® 

• 

o® 

• oo 

• o® 

o 

o® 

• 

O® 

o • 

o 

• 

• • 

• 

• • 

o 

• o 

o 

o 

• 

o 

• o 

o 

• o 

• oo 

0*0 

• 

• o 

o 

• o 

o o 

o 


1® 


2® 


3® 


4 

o 


5°' 


6 ® 

7® 

8° 


9° 


o® 

B 

o 


Fig. 16 

NOTE: Only the circled black dots are read by the three column reading mechanism 


DUAL READING TECHNIQUE 
(COMBINING 3 COLUMN READING WITH INLINE READING) 

COMBINATION OF 
IN-LINE & DIGIT CODE 


DIGIT 

IN-LINE 

FOR PHOTOELECTRIC 

PATTERN 

PATTERN 

READING 

o o o 

o 

o o o 

ool-i 

® -1 

O O # - 1 

O # O -2 

® -2 

o ## - 2 

#00-3 

® -3 

# O # - 3 

O O # -4 

® -4 

O O # - 4 

o o o 

o 

o o o 

# — 5 Check Hole 

® -5 

#- 5 

O- Sprocket Hole 

o 

O — Sprocket Hole 


Fig. 17 


16 














III. THE NATIVE LANGUAGES 
OF READING MACHINES 


Native languages are not limited to holes. 
There are machines that read text, or read 
characters (as those in magnetic ink on bank 
checks), or read dots and dashes (bars) placed 
on documents by credit card imprinters. 
They read the print and convert it into the 
native language of the machines involved so 
that the machines can talk to each other. 

Many people believe that these machine 
reading methods open up an entirely new 
vista of opportunity for source data automation. 
Collectively they are often referred to as 
scanning methods, or optical character rec¬ 
ognition. 

For a native language, one of the following 
types of objects will be read: 

• DOTS 

• BARS 

• SELECTED TYPE FACES 

• MAGNETIC INK 

DOTS AS A NATIVE LANGUAGE 

At this time, two machines use dots as a native 
language. One is known to the trade as 
FOSDIC, Film Optical Sensing Device for 
Input to Computers, and is owned and operated 
by the Department of Commerce, Bureau of 
the Census. The other is known as Docu- 
Tran and is owned and operated by Science 
Research Associates, Inc. 

FOSDIC was used in the 1960 Census of 
Population and Housing, one of the world’s 
largest statistical operations. The individual 
census enumerator obtained information con¬ 
cerning a person, a family, and housing facilities. 
He received the information (data) orally from 
the householder or in a written form on docu¬ 
ments which had been previously mailed to the 
householder. The data were recorded by check¬ 
ing boxes or by writing dates or other facts on 
a conventional form. 

In the quiet of his home, the enumerator 
transcribed data from the conventional form 
on which it was recorded to a form specially 
designed to capture the native language of 
FOSDIC. Transcription was accomplished by 


filling in the small circles under the appropriate 
columns on the special form, figure 18. 

After the recording of data on the special 
forms was completed, they were microfilmed. 
The negative microfilm was processed through 
FOSDIC, whose electronic circuitry translated 
little dots of light (negative appearance of a 
filled-in circle) into a pulse for recording directly 
onto magnetic tape. 

The pulse was created at the rate of 1,000 
spots per second for translation to the native 
language of the computer. Data recorded by 
the enumerator at the source were used to feed 
a computer. 

The black rectangles on the form, figure 18, 
serve one or more of the following purposes: 

Tilt Marks —To permit FOSDIC to deter¬ 
mine how the microfilm image is alined 
in relation to its scanner mechanism. 

Size Checks —To permit FOSDIC to ad¬ 
just for slight variation in microfilm 
reduction ratios. 

Index Checks —To permit FOSDIC to 
position its scanning beam on a field of 
data. 

Special form techniques had to be de¬ 
veloped to record certain data in the native 
language of FOSDIC. Section P6 of figure 18 
indicates how birth date had to be recorded, 
in lieu of writing six Arabic digits as normally 
used. 

The DocuTran System of Science Research 
Associates, Inc., varies principally from 
FOSDIC in the direct use of the paper docu¬ 
ments as input, instead of microfilm images. 

Forms, used as input to DocuTran, may 
be a minimum size of 5 by 3 inches; a maximum 
of by 11 inches. Each position for recording 
data is indicated by a tiny printed circle. Data 
are recorded by filling in a circle with a common 
pencil. On a maximum size form there are 
5,320 possible positions (called response posi¬ 
tions) for recording data. Several positions 
may be dedicated to a multiple-choice answer 
and as such are called a field. Figures 19 
through 21 illustrate several of the techniques 
used to record various types of data. 


17 


FORM USED FOR FOSDIC RECORDING THE NATIVE LANGUAGE IN DOTS 



Fig. 18 


When the circles are filled in, the completed 
paper forms are processed through a DocuTran 
reader where photoelectrically operated cir¬ 
cuitry reads the filled-in circles. Reading 
sensitivity of the DocuTran can be set for a 
wide range of mark intensity, thus permitting 
the selection of the darkest mark in a field of 
data and the rejection of stray marks and 
erasures. Circuitry permits reading both sides 
of a paper document simultaneously. Internal 
circuitry permits the reader to translate the 
data into the native language of punched cards, 
paper tape, or magnetic tape. It can also 
transmit the data directly to the memory of a 
computer. 

Special considerations have to be given to 
quality control in printing forms for FOSDIC 
and DocuTran. In addition, special quality 
control must be exercised in the production 
of microfilm copies for FOSDIC. 


In such credit cards an arrangement of bars 
embossed on the card represents the account 
number. Figure 22 illustrates a typical credit 
card with bars—the native language—for 
source data automation of sales information. 

Code Structure 

The code structure consists of short and long 
bars to encode numeric data only. The digits 

RECORDING NUMERIC DATA FOR 
DOCUTRAN READER 


IDENTIFICATION INFORMATION 


ID NUMBER 

TEST 

SERIES 

ELIGIBLE 

PRESENT 

REGISTER 

YEARS 

CAREER 

EXPER 

BIRTHDATE 

Month 

Year 

• 


® 

® 

® 

® 

• is 

O 

Yes 


• 

O 

JAN 

® 

® 

© 

© 

© 

• 

© 

© 




• 


O 

FEB 

• 

® 

® 


• 

® 

® 

© 

Oi* 




® 

o 

MAR 

® 

® 

® 

• 

® 

® 

® 

® 


• 

No 



o 

APR 

® 

® 

© 

© 

© 

© 

© 

© 

Oio 



® 

® 

o 

MAY 


® 

© 

© 

© 

© 

© 

• 




© 

© 

o 

JUN 


• 

© 

® 

© 

© 

© 

® 





© 

o 

Mil 


® 

© 

© 

© 

© 

® 

© 





© 

o 

AUG 


© 

© 

© 

© 

© 

• 

© 





© 

• 

SEP 

© 

© 

© 

® 

® 

® 

® 

© 





© 

o 

OCT 

© 

© 












o 

NOV 














o 

OEC 



0 

3 

1 

1 

8 

5 

18 


1 

0 


1 

5 


BARS AS A NATIVE LANGUAGE 

Persons with gasoline credit cards may already 
have seen this media of source data automation. 


18 


Fig. 19 


















































































































RECORDING ALPHABETIC IDENTIFICATION 
FOR DOCUTRAN READER 

NAME GRID 



Fig. 20 


FIELDS DEDICATED TO RESPONSES TO 
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS 
FOR DOCUTRAN READER 


1 ®®©®# 

2 ®#©®® 
3®®#®® 
4 ®®©®# 
5 ®®©#® 
6 ®#©®® 
7 #®©®® 
8 #®©©© 
9 ®®#®® 

10 ®®©®# 


46 ®®©®® 

47 ®®©®® 

48 ®®©®® 

49 ® ® © ® ® 

30 ®®©@® 

31 ®®©@© 

32 ®®©@® 

33 ®®©®® 

54 ®®©@® 
33 ®®©®® 


91 ®®©®® 
92 ®®©®® 
93 ®®©®® 
94 ® ® © © © 
93 ®®©®® 
96 ®®©®© 

97 ®®©®® 

98 ®®©®® 
99 ®®©®® 

lOO®®©®® 


11®®©#® 36 ®®©®© 101 ®®©®j 

12®#©®© 57 ®®©@© 102®®J) 
13 ®®©#® 38 ®®©®© 


Fig. 21 


A CREDIT CARD 

WITH BARS FOR NATIVE LANGUAGE 



Fig. 22 


are designated by the position of the bars. 
What appears to be a long bar to the human 
eye is actually read by the machines as two 
short bars. Thus, the position of one short bar 
represents the digits and the other short bar 
serves as a parity check for the reading machine 
to check on the loss of a bar during transmission 
of the pulse. 

Imprinting Code 

The bar code is normally carried in a plastic 
or metal card in a raised type which permits 
recording equipment to obtain an impression 
of the code on a paper form. Data are em¬ 
bossed on the plastic or metal card in bar code 
and human-readable characters by Graphotype 
machines. These machines are keyboard oper¬ 
ated or are tape or punched card actuated. The 
cards are used in a recording machine which 
makes an imprint of the code, through a ribbon 
of the machine or through carbon paper, onto 
a punched card. At the time of use, the 
recorder can imprint: 

Constant Data —From the card of the 
customer, as well as from a plastic card 
identifying department, station, or sales¬ 
person. 

Common Data —From a series of wheels 
in the imprinter, such as date of trans¬ 
action. 

Variable Data —From a set of print 
wheels positioned by sliding levers, such 
as amount of sale. 


727-995 a—■65- 


-4 


19 





























AN IMPRINTING DEVICE FOR 
RECORDING BAR CODE 


BAR CODE READER 



Fig. 23 

Figure 23 illustrates an imprinting device 
for recording bar code from an embossed card 
onto a punched card. 

Processing Data 

Since the code is imprinted on a punched card 
of 80 columns or on a 51-column portion of 
such a card, the information is ultimately proc¬ 
essed through ancillary punched-card equip¬ 
ment, such as sorters, collators, and tabulators. 

The first step in the cycle, however, is the 
reading of the imprinted bars. The machine, 
figure 24, reads the bar code and punches the 
rectangular holes into the same card, converting 
the native language of the bar to the native 
language of the punched card. The reading 
machine can punch on— 

80-column card—27 columns of read infor¬ 
mation and 13 columns of preset infor¬ 
mation—total of 40 columns per card. 

51-column card—20 columns of read or 
preset information. 

A sample of the data read from bar code 
and punched into the same card is shown in 
figure 25. 

With special machines designed for bar¬ 
code reading, the following additional functions 
can also be performed: 

Accumulate —Add imprinted amount on 
detail cards, and punch a summary card. 

List —List data, from each detail card, for 
a transaction register or batch control. 



Fig. 24 


DATA READ FROM BAR CODE AND 
PUNCHED INTO SAME CARD bar 

CODE 



Fig. 25 


Number —Assign a consecutive number 
(six-digit maximum) to each detail card 
for reconciliation or batch control. 

Balance —Compare a stored total from an 
accumulator to a predetermined total 
on a batch control card. 


20 









SELECTED TYPEFACES AS A 
NATIVE LANGUAGE 

Another widespread method of machine reading 
involves the reading of selected typefaces. 
Credit cards often have numbers embossed on 
the card to represent the account number. 
The digits may be accompanied by the bars 
previously described or may appear by them¬ 
selves on the card. The numbers sometimes 
have a rather odd, highly stylized appearance. 

Figure 26 illustrates a typical card with a 
stylized typeface, a native language. Some of 
the stylized type fonts are designed specifically 
for a particular method of machine reading. 
For other methods of reading, a stylized type¬ 
face may be helpful, but not necessary. The 
embossed numbers are often stylized to improve 
the print quality and machine recognition. 


The machine-reading results are always best if 
the print is of a consistent and reliable quality. 

Code Structure 

Existing machines read one of three codes. 
These code structures are— 

• Numeric data only. 

• Numeric and upper case alphabetic data. 

• Numeric and upper and lower case 
alphabetic data. 

Each alphabetic character or numeric 
digit has been designed as a distinctive shape 
that cannot be read as another character or 
digit regardless of the quality of the image. 
For example, the numeral “6” cannot be read 
by the machine as the numeral “8” because of 
a poor impression or carbon. 


A CREDIT CARD 
WITH STYLIZED TYPE FACE 


ANOTHER MODEL OF 
AN IMPRINTING DEVICE 



Fig. 26 


21 





Figure 27 is illustrative of another selected 
type font containing numerals, and also upper 
and lower case alphabetic data for a specific 
model machine. Though the typeface looks 
only slightly different from the printed word 
we read daily, it is in reality a native language 
for a particular machine. 

Processing Data 

Machines which read type faces and process 
the data vary widely. The data generated by 
reading machines are frequently used in con¬ 
junction with other data-processing equipment, 
such as punched card or computer equipment. 
Thus, the output of reading machines is often 
the native language of the paper tape, punched 
card, or magnetic tape machines. Many read¬ 
ing machines can also be connected to electronic 
computers as a direct on-line input device. 

Machines are not only restricted to reading 
one of the three possible code structures, but 
are also restricted to reading this structure on a 
certain medium. Machines may be categorized 
as Document Readers, Page Readers, and Self¬ 
punch Readers. The capabilities of each kind 
of reader are briefly described in the following 
paragraphs. 

Document Reader. The document reader is 
a machine, similar to the one in figure 28, that 
has the capability of reading one or two lines 
of data at a time, from paper or card stock 
documents ranging in size from 2% inches by 
2% inches up to 8% inches by 6 inches. It will 


accept data printed by many conventional 
machines, such as typewriters, adding machines, 
and high-spe 2 d printers. Pencil or ink marks 
in preprinted mark guides may be used to 
produce specific codes in the output. Location 
of lines to be read may vary from one applica¬ 
tion to another within the specified margin 
requirements of the reader. 

Some of the features which may be added 
to the document reader are as follows: 

Batch header —Allows data read from 
the first document, a header document, 
to be recorded in the output for all 
subsequent documents. 

Accumulato r —Accumulates variable 
amounts from documents it has read 
and transfers totals to output. Device 
will print on a lister, if desired, as well as 
add, subtract, and read signs (plus and 
minus). 

List printer —Prints on a continuous 
tape the data received from the reader 
or accumulator. 

Serial numberer —Generates an ascend¬ 
ing serial number for each document 
read, and includes that number in 
output. 

Page Reader. The page reader is a machine, 
similar to the one in fig. 29, that has the ca¬ 
pability of reading all of the information con¬ 
tained on pages ranging in size up to 8% inches 
by 13 y 2 inches. Information contained on a 


A TYPE FONT FOR A READING MACHINE 


This electronic wonder performs the same function you are 
performing now;.it reads this type style, upper and lower 
case alphabetic characters, common punctuation marks, and 
numeric characters, 01 2345b78R. Model IP 5 P has ability 
either to read full pages of typewritten information, 
single or double-spaced, or to scan entire pages In 
search of particular information, further translating it 
into a punched paper tape code. Whether the 5-level or 
the b-level code is used, the page reader scans and punches 
240 characters per second, automatically feeding from page 
to page. Among the many potential uses, the IP5P offers 
automated systems in such areas as communications trans¬ 
mission, typesetting, data reduction, scientific literature 
abstraction, catalog-indexing and language translation. 


Fig. 27 

22 



A DOCUMENT READER 



Fig. 28 


page is read a line at a time from documents 
printed with the type font selected for that 
machine. It will accept data printed by 
many conventional machines, such as type¬ 
writers, adding machines, and high-speed print¬ 
ers. The page reader is normally equipped 
with locators which enable the machine to 
find the vertical position of the first line to 
be read and to ignore all printing above that 
first line. 

Some of the features which may be added 
to the page reader are as follows: 

Counters —Count the lines read and the 
punched cards produced by the reader. 

Serial numberer —Generates an ascend¬ 
ing serial number for each page read and 
includes that number in output. 

Shift registers —Position variably right 
registered fields, such as money amounts, 
in the correct columns of a field of data on 
a punched card. 


Selfpunch Reader. The selfpunch reader is a 
machine, like the one in figure 30, that has the 
capability of reading data imprinted on a 
card and punching the data into the same card. 
A single line of data on each punched card is 
read and punched. Data to be read are most 
frequently imprinted from metal or plastic 
cards containing the appropriate typeface 
embossed thereon. Punching into the card 
is machine verified to assure accuracy. 

Some of the features which may be added 
to a selfpunch reader are as follows: 

Preprogramer —Permits adding constant 
data to each record read. 

Accumulator —Accumulates variable 

amounts from documents it has read 
and transfers totals to output. 

Serial numberer —Generates an ascend¬ 
ing serial number for each document 
read and includes that number in 
output. 


23 











A PAGE READER 



Fig. 29 


Tabulator —Prints out and totals a proof 
journal of all punched data. 

List printer —Lists on a continuous form 
the data received during the reading 
cycle or received from an auxiliary 
punched-card input. 

MAGNETIC INK AS A NATIVE 
LANGUAGE 

In April 1959, the American Bankers Asso¬ 
ciation published the specifications for a native 
language to be used in the banking industry, 
Magnetic Ink Character Recognition, famil¬ 
iarly called MICR. 


This native language and its associated 
equipment unlocked the door to source data 
automating the largest non-government paper¬ 
work-handling application made to date. 

Code Structure 

The MICR language consists of 10 digits, 
zero through 9, and 4 special symbols, figure 31, 
printed in a stylized typeface with an ink 
containing particles of iron oxide. 

The digits can be read by the human eye, 
with a little imagination on the part of the 
reader. They resemble the shapes of the digits 
we are familiar with. 


24 








A SELFPUNCH READER 



Fig. 30 


Data Fields 

To make MICR usable as a native language, it 
was necessary to define what magnetic printing 
was essential and where it should appear on a 
check. 

The bottom five-eighths inch is reserved for 
encoding in MICR. A space of 6 inches, meas¬ 
ured from the right edge of the check, is specified 
as the universal imprinting area. On large 
checks data can be recorded outside the 6-inch 
universal area, which will not be processed by 
other banks handling the check during clear¬ 
ance. 


Specific areas within the universal 6-inch 
area are designated to contain specific types of 
data common to all banking operations. All 
data fields, as illustrated in figure 32, are meas¬ 
ured from the right edge of the check. 

All data, except the amount, can be printed 
before the bank issues the check to the user. 
The amount is encoded by the first bank 
receiving the check for processing. 

Processing Data 

The particles of iron oxide in the MICR ink are 
magnetized by the machines which process the 


25 






MAGNETIC INK CHARACTER RECOGNITION TYPE FONT 



Fig. 31 


DATA FIELD LOCATION FOR MICR 



X 

Z 


/ 

SERIAL Number 

FEDERAL RESERVE 

A. B. A. TRANSIT number ACCOUNT number 

AMOUNT 


routing symbol 

up to 4’/»" 

W tO l 7 /." 


up to 5%" 
from edge 

from edge 

from edgo 


Fig. 32 


26 











documents and the magnetized fields are de¬ 
tected by magnetic reading heads, very similar 
to those in home tape recorders. 

When MICR characters are magnetized in 
the processing equipment, they send out pulse 
patterns illustrated beside each digit and symbol 
in figure 31. These pulse patterns are distin¬ 
guished in the circuitry of the processing 
machines to actuate other circuitry to perform 
automated functions. 

Sorting of checks by Federal Reserve bank 
symbol, by American Bankers Association tran¬ 
sit number, and individual bank account num¬ 
ber is the current practice. This sorting alone 
saves much labor and speeds up getting the 
check to the bank on which it is drawn. 

Further mechanization can be accomplished 
with specific models of MICR equipment. The 


magnetic ink may control the actual posting 
to the proper accounts, the preparation of 
statements, and the preparation of reports for 
the bank and for the Federal Reserve System. 

For convenience and economy of printing, 
magnetic ink is permissible on any part of the 
check. The MICR machines read only char¬ 
acters in the areas on the document specified 
by the American Bankers Association. Regular 
ink appearing anywhere on the form, even over 
data imprinted in magnetic ink in the specified 
location, will have no effect on the processing 
of the selected data, since it does not have the 
ability to receive and maintain magnetic charge. 

MICR can be converted to punched holes 
in tapes or cards, or magnetic tape, or fed 
directly to a computer. 


7127-995 0 — 65—5 


27 















IV. MODES OF CAPTURING DATA 


With today’s modern source data automation 
equipment there are available three major 
modes of capturing selected data in the native 
language of machines: 

• DELIBERATE CREATION 

• BYPRODUCT CREATION 

• CONVERSION CREATION 

The machines used in source data automation 
may be capable of performing in more than one 
mode. For example, a machine which punches 
a tape as a primary function may also be capable 
of producing a byproduct tape in the same 
native language. 

DELIBERATE CREATION OF A 
NATIVE LANGUAGE 

The techniques of source data automation 
require the manual depression of a key to 
record a native language on a carrier. This is 
the oldest method of deliberately creating a 
native language. Key punching of cards, an 
example of this mode, is still the widest used 
manual method of data capture. 

The following pages describe machines 
which deliberately produce native language 
carriers. Evaluation of each machine in the 
framework of source data automation must be 
based on the needs of the individual application. 

Holes in Tapes 

When tape is to be generated, it is possible to 
create the native language deliberately by 
depressing the keys of a punching device, simi¬ 
lar to that shown in figure 33. On most 

DELIBERATE CREATION OF A 
PUNCHED PAPER TAPE WITH A 
TYPEWRITER 



Fig. 33 


models of equipment, production of the tape is 
accompanied by simultaneous production of a 
ribbon (hard) copy of the data on paper or 
forms. 

Another deliberate tape-generating mech¬ 
anism, without the production of hard copy, is 
a data recorder similar to the one shown in 
figure 34. Variable data are manually set in 
the keyboard of this device and all keyed 
data are punched at one time into a five-chan¬ 
nel tape. Fixed data, in limited amounts, can 
be punched from code bars built into the ma¬ 
chine at the time of manufacture. Mechanical 
interlocks make the keyboard accept only cer¬ 
tain digits in selected fields, when a control bar 
is depressed. For example, if “Style Bar” in 
the machine in figure 34 is depressed, selected 
columns will be limited to certain predeter¬ 
mined numbers, thus reducing the possibility of 
human error. Data can also be captured from 
print-punch tags inserted in the recorder at the 
time of operation. 


DELIBERATE CREATION OF A 
PUNCHED PAPER TAPE WITHOUT 
A HARD COPY 





Fig. 34 

Holes in Cards 

When punched cards are to be generated, it is 
possible to create the native language deliber¬ 
ately by using— 


29 



A keyboard-actuated punch, figure 35, to 
produce an 80- or 90-column card. 


DELIBERATE CREATION OF A 
PUNCHED CARD WITH A KEY 
PUNCH MACHINE 



Fig. 35 


A stylus and a prescored card, figure 36, to 
record a maximum of 40 columns in an 
80-column card. 


DELIBERATE CREATION OF A 
PUNCHED CARD USING PRESCORED 
CARD AND STYLUS 



Fig. 36 


A conductor’s punch and a card with 
prepunched pilot holes, figure 37, to 
record up to 90 columns in a round-hole 
card. 

A portable data recorder, figure 38, to 
punch up to 80 columns of information, 
6 columns at a time in an 80-column card. 


DELIBERATE CREATION OF A 
PUNCHED CARD USING CON¬ 
DUCTOR'S PUNCH AND CARD 
WITH PREPUNCHED PILOT HOLES 



DELIBERATE CREATION OF A 
PUNCHED CARD USING 
PORTABLE DATA RECORDER 



Fig. 38 


A portable nonelectric, lever set punch, 
figure 39, to record information in a 
standard or special plastic punched card. 



Fig. 39 





























































A special electrographic pencil and a 
specially printed card, figure 40, to 
record up to 27 columns of information 
on an 80-column card. 


DELIBERATE CREATION OF A 
PUNCHED CARD USING AN 
ELECTROGRAPHIC PENCIL 



Fig. 40 


Holes in Tags 

When tags are used, it is possible to create 
the native language deliberately, only by 
setting the dials of a print-punch recorder, 
figure 41. Once the dials are set, many tags 



Fig. 41 


containing the necessary data may be made 
automatically without resetting the dials. 

Perforations in Coupons 

When coupons are used, it is possible to create 
the native language deliberately, only by 
setting dials, inserting pins, or depressing the 
keys of a perforator, figures 42 and 43. Once 
set, the machine will perforate many coupons 
simultaneously. 

Dots 

When dots are to be scanned as the input, it 
is possible to create the native language only 
by blacking-in a circle with a pencil on a 
specially designed form. 

Bars 

When bars are to be scanned as the input for 
selected data, it is possible to create the native 
language deliberately by obtaining an impression 
of the code from a metal or plastic plate, using 
a device similar to that in figure 23. 

Selected Typefaces 

When selected typefaces are to be read, it is 
possible to create the native language deliber¬ 
ately with a data recorder similar to that in 
figure 23. The native language can also be 



DELIBERATE CREATION OF A 
COUPON USING A HAND 
OPERATED DEVICE 


Fig. 42 


31 


























DELIBERATE CREATION OF A 
COUPON USING AN 
ELECTRICALLY OPERATED 
PREFORATOR 



Fig. 43 


created by typing or printing with the proper 
typeface. 

Magnetic Ink 

When magnetic ink is used as the native 
language for source data automation, it is 
possible to create the language in an iron-oxide¬ 
bearing ink, by use of standard duplicating or 
printing equipment. Another way of creating 
the language involves imprinting with a device 
similar to that in figure 23, equipped with a 
special ribbon bearing iron oxide ink. 

BYPRODUCT CREATION OF A 
NATIVE LANGUAGE 

The byproduct capture of data in the native 
machine language is not new, though it some¬ 
times has not been recognized as such. For 
many years it has been possible to list detailed 
transactions from unit records in punched cards 
and simultaneously create, through a cable 
connected piece of auxiliary equipment, a 
summary card indicating total transactions on 
a class of items. 


Methods of creating byproducts vary. 
The following pages describe machines which 
capture native languages as the byproduct of an 
essential operation. 

Holes in Tape 

Most models of equipment using tape as the 
carrier of the native language produced the 
tape and a ribbon copy simultaneously. Often 
it is essentia] to type data, at its inception, 
on some form or document. If at this time a 
tape is produced for other steps in the paper¬ 
work cycle, the tape may be considered as the 
byproduct of a necessary operation. 

Most models of equipment which basically 
operate from or produce paper tape permit 
the simultaneous creation of one or two by¬ 
products in native languages. 

Figure 44 is an illustration of a procure¬ 
ment system existing in many places today. 
Byproduct tapes can be produced by the 
punching device which is an integral part of 
the typewriter, by a cable connected auxiliary 
tape punch, or by both punches. The by¬ 
product tape being used in the second type¬ 
writer (6), figure 44, is producing still another 
byproduct tape for further source data auto¬ 
mation. 

When a keypunch machine, 80 or 90 
columns, is connected by cable to the tape- 
actuated typewriter (fig. 45), punched cards 
are produced in their native language, as the 
byproduct of a necessary typing operation. 
It is worth noting that the tape-actuated 
typewriter in this instance is reading punched 
cards as its input, rather than conventional 
tape. Typing from the punched card is con¬ 
trolled by the program tape in the equip¬ 
ment called the selective secondary input (2). 

The punching devices, either those that 
are integral parts of the typewriter or those 
cable connected to the typewriter, may be 
capturing in a native language all of the data, 
selected bits of data, or a combination of all 
and selected bits. 

It is frequently possible to produce a 
byproduct 5-, 6-, 7-, or 8-channel tape or 
punched cards of the 80- or 90-column variety 
without the use of a tape or punched card 
device as the basic input. If a typewritten 
document is not needed at the source of the 


32 



PURCHASE ORDER AND CHECK WRITING SYSTEM USING BY PRODUCT DATA CAPTURE 




Item Wide Tape 


Vendor 
Wide Tape 


Auxiliary Tape Punch 



Byproduct Tape 
For Automatic 
Writing of 
Daily Check 
Register and 
Tape-to-Card 
Conversion. 


Tape Actuated 
Typewriter 


Fig. 44 


33 

































































SALES ORDER SYSTEM USING PUNCHED CARDS AND TAPE ACTUATED TYPEWRITER 


Customer & Item 
Punched Cards 



Unit to Control Operation 
of Key Punch Machine 





O ® (J O 3 

o q a> q> a 


Secondary Selective 
Input Device and 
Punched Card 
Writing Control Unit 


IT 

i 

i 

i 

i 

/V- 

Ji& 

—^ 

■ 

- - 



Manual Data 
Selector 


Card Punch 



Punched Cards 
for Sales 
Analyses and 
Commission Computation. 


© 


Program Tape 


Fig. 45 


34 


















































































data, a paper tape or a punched card can be 
created from the following conventional pieces 
of office equipment: 

Adding machines, figure 46, which per¬ 
form all the regular functions of such 
a machine and produce a punched 
paper tape. 

Accounting machines, figure 47, which 
produce either paper tape or punched 
cards as a byproduct of normal de¬ 
scriptive accounting procedures. 

Bookkeeping machines, figure 48, which 
produce either paper tape or punched 
cards as a byproduct of normal non- 
descriptive accounting procedures. 

Cash registers, figure 49, often called 
point-of-sale recorders, which produce 
either paper tape or punched cards as 
a byproduct of on-the-spot sale re¬ 
cordings. 


BY PRODUCT CAPTURE OF A 
TAPE WITH AN ADDING 
MACHINE 



Fig. 46 


Holes in cards 

Many of the machines described in the previous 
paragraphs, that are capable of producing tape 
as a byproduct, can also produce punched 
cards as a byproduct. 

Perhaps the best known byproduct of 
punched cards is the summary card. This 
card is produced by cable connecting a device 
known as a summary punch or document 
originating machine to the electric accounting 


BY PRODUCT CAPTURE OF A 
TAPE USING AN ACCOUNTING 
MACHINE 



Fig. 47 


machine (commonly called a tabulator, which 
trade term is used hereafter to avoid any 
confusion with other types of accounting 
machines). Figure 50 illustrates typical equip¬ 
ment. The tabulator could be producing a 
summary listing or a detail unit record listing 
of the cards it is reading, at the same time 
it is producing the punched summary card. 

Another byproduct of a punched card is 
the result of card duplicating. The keypunch 
machine, figure 51, used to create deliberately 
the native language of the punched card, has 
the ability to duplicate selected data from the 
last card it punched into the card it is now 
punching. Thus, the card duplicating feature 
permits creation of a byproduct unit record 
from its previously punched unit record. 

Byproduct punched cards are also possible 
as the result of time and attendance recording. 
A timeclock, figure 52, used to record time-in, 
time-out, or other time factors, can print the 
time on the card and simultaneously punch an 
80-column card. 

Metal or plastic identification cards, similar 
to gasoline company credit cards, can contain 
embossed data for repetitive writing in the 
lower portion of the card and an in-line five- 
channel code in punched holes in the upper 
portion—another native language similar to the 
five-channel telecommunications code. A card 
of this nature is illustrated as figure 53. When 
this card is used in a device similar to that 


727-995 0 — 65—^6 


35 








BY PRODUCT CAPTURE OF A TAPE USING A SMALL BOOKKEEPING 

AAACHINE 



Fig. 48 


shown in figure 54, the holes in the upper portion 
of the card actuate a punching mechanism to 
punch selected data, such as account number, 
directly into a punched card. Variable infor¬ 
mation may be lever set or key set to be punched 
into the same card. Thus, the punched-card 
native language is being produced as a by¬ 
product of a writing (imprinting) operation. 

Holes in Tags 

At the present there is no known method of 
creating the native language of the print-punch 
tag as the byproduct of another operation. 
Tags can be used to produce a byproduct five-, 
six-, seven-, or eight-channel tape with an 
auxiliary reader attached to a point-of-sale 


recorder, similar to that shown in figure 49. 
Variable data can be keyed in with the cash 
register, and fixed data can be obtained from 
the tag attached to the merchandise. Thus, a 
byproduct tape can be produced every time a 
sale is rung up, in a native language acceptable 
for further source data automation. 

Tags can be used to inventory merchandise 
on the shelves. A portable unit for reading 
tags attached to merchandise produces a 
byproduct tape containing data from the tag 
and variable data which has been entered from 
a keyboard or dials. Figure 55 illustrates such 
a reader for print-punch tags, while figure 56 
illustrates usch a reader for plastic or metal 
card. With these devices, a byproduct of 


36 









BY PRODUCT CAPTURE OF A TAPE USING A CASH REGISTER OR 
POINT-OF-SALE RECORDER 



Fig. 49 


BY PRODUCT CAPTURE OF A PUNCHED CARD 
BY SUMMARY PUNCHING 








1 

Summary Card 

(Punched Totals) 

! - 1 1 



A PUNCHED SUMMARY 
CARD FOR EACH GROUP 
OF UNIT RECORDS 


DOCUMENT-ORIGINATING 

MACHINE 


ACCOUNTING 

MACHINE 


Fig. 50 
37 
























































































BY PRODUCT CAPTURE OF A PUNCHED CARD THRU THE KEY PUNCH MACHINE 

(DUPLICATING) 




inventorying materials is a tape in the required 
native language for further source data automa¬ 
tion. 

Perforations in Coupons 

Only one known means of creating the native 
language of the coupon as the byproduct of 
another operation now exists. The batch 
number and amount can by perforated into 
coupons, with a combined adding machine and 
perforator, while the adding machine produces 
a printed adding machine tape. Figure 57 
illustrates such a device. 

Dots 

There is no known method, at this time, of 
producing dots as the byproduct of another 
operation. 

Bars 

Bars as a native language are always a by¬ 
product of an imprinting operation. Each time 
the imprinter produces an image on a paper 
document, the necessary numerical data in the 
native language of the bar-reading devices 
is also produced. 


BY PRODUCT CAPTURE OF A 
PUNCHED CARD USING TIME 
AND ATTENDANCE RECORDER 



Fig. 52 


38 



































BY PRODUCT CAPTURE OF A PUNCHED BY PRODUCT USE OF PRINT PUNCH TAG 
CARD USING AN EMBOSSED CREDIT CARD FOR INVENTORYING MERCHANDISE 



Fig. 53 


BY PRODUCT CAPTURE 
OF A PUNCHED CARD 
READER FOR EMBOSSED CARDS 



Fig. 54 

Name, address, and account number, 
already captured in the native language of tape 
or punched cards, can be used to produce 
metal or plastic identification cards. Figure 
58 illustrates an embossing machine used to 
produce metal or plastic identification cards 
from tape or punched cards which may have 
been captured as the byproduct of another 
necessary operation. 



Fig. 55 


Identification cards can have “human” 
readable language as well as the bar code for 
numerical data. Similar competitive devices 
can produce the five-channel in-line punched 
hole code in plastic cards, in lieu of the bar 
code. 

Selected Typefaces 

The use of selected typefaces as a native 
language for reading is predicated on the pro¬ 
duction of selected data in the required native 
language as the byproduct of a necessary writing 
operation. 

In plastic or metal identification cards, 
stylized typefaces have all of the same attributes 
as the bar code. Imprinting from the plates 
produces the necessary native language as a 
byproduct. Plates can be produced through 
an embossing machine, figure 58, as the by¬ 
product of another necessary operation. 


39 










BY PRODUCT USE OF METAL OR PLASTIC 
EMBOSSED CARD FOR INVENTORYING 



Fig. 56 


BY PRODUCT PRODUCTION OF 
EMBOSSED PLATES FROM TAPE 
OR PUNCHED CARDS 



Fig. 58 


BY PRODUCT COUPON PERFORATION 
WITH AN ADDING MACHINE 



Fig. 57 

Typing or printing on a necessary form or 
document, in the selected typeface, makes that 
form or document acceptable as input to the 
reader in use. Thus, each form of document 
prepared as a necessary typing or printing 
operation automatically produces the native 


language as a byproduct to that writing opera¬ 
tion. 

Magnetic Ink 

In the banking industry, most of the data are 
deliberately created by printing or imprinting 
in an iron oxide ink. Plastic cards, embossed 
with E13-B typeface, can be used to imprint 
account numbers on deposit slips carbonized 
with special iron oxide carbon paper. These 
slips are scanned by a machine similar to the 
one in figure 59. Still missing from the papers, 
however, is the amount of money for which the 
check or other financial instrument is drawn. 
The missing data can be placed on the document 
in magnetic ink, as a byproduct of an adding or 
bankproof machine operation. 

CONVERSION CREATION OF A 
NATIVE LANGUAGE 

Until recently each manufacturer made only 
equipment that operated from the carriers he 
had selected and that operated only from the 
native language he wanted. The preceding 
discussion of the byproduct creation of a native 


40 











SCANNING AAAGNETIC INK CHARACTERS PRODUCED FROM 
EMBOSSED PLATES 



Fig. 59 


language has given some indication of how this 
picture has changed in recent years. The dis¬ 
cussion has covered the byproduct capture of 
a native language: on punched cards from tape- 
actuated machines, on tape from punched-card- 
actuated typewriters, and on punched cards or 
tape from machines not normally associated 
with source data automation, such as account¬ 
ing, bookkeeping, and adding machines. 

However, using a single native language for 
a complex paperwork system hampers mechani¬ 
zation to its full potential. Manufacturers of 
data-processing equipment recognize that one 
organization may justify a tape-actuated system 
while another requires a punched-card system. 
Perhaps even a computer may be required for a 
still larger organization. The data flowing be¬ 
tween these three different organizations would 
not have been compatible. The native lan¬ 
guage of each set of equipment was not uniform 
or interchangeable. Although the data had 
once been put in a native language, that lan¬ 
guage was valueless to the other organizations 


without their resorting to manual key depres¬ 
sions. With this condition becoming more and 
more prevalent, manufacturers brought forth 
a new type of equipment—thus was born the 
line of equipment called converters. 

It is safe to say that any native language 
used to source-data-automate any paperwork 
system can, if the need exists, be converted to 
any other native language by the use of the 
proper converter. If a new native language is 
developed by a manufacturer, a converter to 
change that new language to any other native 
language will soon appear on the market. 

Some of the representative converters now 
available are described in the table, figure 60. 

Another device for conversion is called an 
intercoupler. Intercouplers are electromechan¬ 
ical units which interconnect two machines, 
thereby making the operation of one or both 
machines automatic. The intercoupler may be 
used to feed data, in a native language, to a 
conventional office machine; to operate another 


41 


















conventional office machine; or to produce a 
byproduct in a native language from a conven¬ 
tional office machine. The illustration, figure 


67 , depicts an intercoupler attached to a con¬ 
ventional accounting machine to permit the 
machine to accept a native language as input. 


REPRESENTATIVE CONVERTERS 


INPUT 

OUTPUT 

SEE 

REMARKS 



FIGURE 



PAPER TAPE 


Any 5-, 6-, 7-, or 8-channel 
tape. 

Any other 5-, 6-, 7-, or 8-channel 
tape. 

Any magnetic tape. 

80- or 90-column punched cards. . . . 

61 

62 

63 



Embossed metal or plastic cards... 

58 

Output may be conventional type 
fonts, selected type fonts for 
reading, in-line punching in upper 
part of a plastic card, combi¬ 
nations of foregoing. 

Any 5-, 6-, 7-, or 8-channel 
wide tape. 

Any 8-channel narrow tape. 

64 



MAGNETIC TAPE 


Any magnetic tape. 

Any 5-, 6-, 7-, or 8-channel paper 

62 



tape. 

80-or 90-column punched cards.... 




PUNCHED CARD 


Any 80- or 90-column card.. 

Any 5-, 6-, 7-, or 8-channel paper 
tape. 

Any magnetic tape. 

Embossed metal or plastic cards. ... 

58 

Output may be conventional type 
fonts, selected type fonts for 
reading, in-line punching in upper 
part of a plastic card, combi¬ 
nations of foregoing. 

PRINT-PUNCH TAG 

Any size print-punch tag.... 

Any 5-, 6-, 7-, or 8-channel paper 
tape. 

80- or 90-column punched cards. . . 

65 

Conversion is a necessity. No 
equipment is available for direct 
processing. Dials in converter 
permit addition of constant infor¬ 
mation during conversion. 

COUPON 

Any size perforated coupon. . 

Any 5-, 6-, 7-, or 8-channel paper 
tape. 

66 

Conversion is a necessity. Except 
for sorting coupons, no equipment 
is available for direct processing. 

BAR CODE 

Bar code impressed on an 
80- or 90-column card. 

Punched holes in the same card . . 

24 





Figure 60 

42 










































CONVERTER—PAPER TAPE TO 
PAPER TAPE 



Fig. 61 

CONVERTER—PAPER TAPE TO 
MAGNETIC TAPE 



Fig. 62 


CONVERTER—PAPER TAPE TO 
PUNCHED CARD 



Fig. 63 


CONVERTER-WIDE PAPER TAPE TO 
NARROW PAPER TAPE 



Fig. 64 


CONVERTER—PRINT PUNCH 
TAG TO PAPER TAPE OR 
PUNCHED CARD 



Fig. 65 


43 























CONVERTER—COUPON TO PAPER TAPE OR PUNCHED CARD 



Fig. 66 


CONVERTER-INTERCOUPLER BEING ATTACHED TO 
A CONVENTIONAL BOOKEEPING MACHINE 



Fig. 67 

44 















V. MACHINABLE FUNCTIONS 


No simple and straightforward answer is 
possible to the question, “Which machine or 
machines are best adapted to a specific paper¬ 
work system or office function?” Since there 
are many variables, each proposed application 
must be weighed on its own merits. 

One of the principal variables influencing 
selection of equipment is the function, or com¬ 
bination of functions, to be performed in the 
complete paperwork cycle. A particular func¬ 
tion in a system may be best performed with 
tape, while another function in the same system 
can best be carried out with punched cards. 
Selection of tape equipment, card equipment, 
or combinations of both, must be determined by 
the overall advantages to the total system. 

Since the function to be performed strongly 
influences selection of equipment, the capa¬ 
bilities of certain machines for performing 
office functious should be compared. At this 
point only tapes and cards as the carriers of the 
native language are discussed, since— 

• Processing with tags is accomplished 

after conversion to tapes, cards, or 
magnetic tapes. 

• Processing with coupons is accom¬ 

plished after conversion to tapes, 
cards, or magnetic tapes, except for 
sorting the coupons. 

• Processing with bars, dots, and selected 

type faces is accomplished principally 
after conversion to tapes, cards, or 
magnetic tapes. 

• Processing with magnetic ink is at 

present limited to the banking indus¬ 
try, although some office applications 
may be developed at a later date. 

At this point, a subject not mentioned before 
is introduced—the transmission of data. Data 
can be transmitted in two basic ways: over a 
wire, as by telephone, or over the air, as by 
radio. Regardless of the method elected, the 
means of transmission is called a communica¬ 
tions network. Networks may be: 

Rented on a toll basis —Paid for by the 
time the circuit is actually tied up. 

Rented on an hourly basis —Paid for at 
an hourly rate, by the hours the circuit 


is in use. Hourly costs vary, depend¬ 
ing on anticipated volume of traffic. 

Leased —Paid for at a flat rate. Available 
at all hours. 

Owned privately —Built and operated at 
will by individual owners. 

Communications networks are required 
whether the distance involved is across the 
room to another piece of equipment or across 
the country to another office. Cable connect¬ 
ing two pieces of adjoining source data automa¬ 
tion machinery is really the equivalent of a 
communications network. The manufacturer, 
however, frequently furnishes the necessary 
wires and contacts as integral parts of his 
machines. 

Depending upon the type and model of 
equipment in use, communications equipment 
may allow sending and receiving only one mes¬ 
sage at a time from each end of a circuit, or as 
many as four sending and four receiving ma¬ 
chines operating simultaneously at each end. 
Thus, it may be possible to send only one mes¬ 
sage in one direction at a time, as many as four 
messages in one direction at a time, or four 
messages in both directions simultaneously. 

The speed of transmission of data varies 
according to the type and model of equipment 
at each end of the circuit. Speeds of most 
standard equipment vary from 60 words (300 
letters, spaces, or symbols) per minute to 
approximately 2,500 characters per minute. 
In general, the higher the transmission speed, 
the greater the cost of the equipment required 
at each end of the network. 

Accuracy of transmission depends upon 
the quality of the communications network. 
Like static, which destroys enjoyment of a 
radio program, noise on a communications 
network destroys the accuracy of data trans¬ 
mission. The accuracy of a network and its 
costs are in direct ratio. Higher transmission 
speeds also require networks with a greater 
degree of accuracy. If data transmission is a 
vital part of a paperwork system, it is suggested 
that a communications specialist be consulted. 

WHAT FUNCTIONS? 

After repetitive data have been captured in a 
native language, many routine office functions 


45 


can be performed by machine. A specific 
function, such as arranging, may best be per¬ 
formed with punched cards, while another 
function, such as completing a form, may best 
be performed with paper tape. 

Some of the functions which can be 
performed by machines are defined as follows: 

INTERPRETING ONTO CARRIERS (INTERPRE¬ 
TATION) 

Interpretation, as used here, is printing 
on the source data automation carrier the 
translation of the holes contained in the carrier, 
thus making the native machine language 
readable to the human eye. 

VERIFYING THE ACCURACY (VERIFICATION) 

Verifying is checking the accuracy of the 
punching of the native language—making sure 
that data recorded in holes have been recorded 
without error. 

WRITING (PRINTING) 

Writing, as a mechanical function, means 
converting the native language into an alpha¬ 
betic and numeric language that can be read. 

DUPLICATING 

Duplication, in the automation sense, is the 
production of copies of complete or selected 
data in a native machine language, for additional 
machine operations. 

ARRANGING (SORTING) 

Arranging is placing cards or tapes into 
specified sequence according to a factor con¬ 
tained in the cards or tapes. 

SELECTING 

Selecting cards or tapes means segregating 
from a mass of unit records, certain records that 
require attention or further machine handling. 

MERGING (COLLATING) 

Merging involves combining two sets of 
unit records into one set in a given sequence. 

MATCHING 

Matching recorded facts is checking for 
agreement between two sets of unit records— 
making sure that each set contains the same 
records. 

COUNTING 

Counting pertains to tallying the number 
of cards or tapes by the type of data recorded 
in each unit record. 

CORRELATING STATISTICAL DATA 

Correlating statistical data is assembling 
information, by machine, from more than one 
source, into related analyzed statistical reports. 


COMPUTING RECORDED DATA 

Computing recorded data from unit records 
involves not only performing of arithmetical 
operations and updating recorded facts involv¬ 
ing arithmetic, but also distributing and 
proofing of financial data or other statistics. 

COMMUNICATING (COMMUNICATIONS) 

Communicating, as a machine function, is 
transmitting all or portions of data from one 
machine in one location to another machine 
in another location, near or far. 

PERFORMING FUNCTIONS WITH 
PUNCHED PAPER TAPE 

Interpreting 

Most common paper tape equipment produces 
the equivalent of a blind code in narrow tape. 
Translation or interpretation onto these com¬ 
mon tapes cannot be accomplished. 

Wide tapes lend themselves to content 
identification. The interpretation is usually 
in the form of a pressure-sensitive label affixed to 
the card. The production of this label should 
be the automatic byproduct of a step in the 
system and not a separate manually typed 
operation or function. 

Several of the five-channel tape-producing 
machines used in the telecommunications in¬ 
dustry can produce a tape with a visual trans¬ 
lation of the holes. This is accomplished by 
not punching the holes completely through the 
tape. Tape of this type is called “chadless” 
tape. 

Figure 68 illustrates a punched tape with 
interpretation and compares it with the con¬ 
ventional blind code punched tape. 

Verifying 

A paper tape is ordinarily verified visually by 
reading the hard copy which is produced 
simultaneously with the tape. A surer way is 
by reading the hard copy produced by the tape 
and comparing it with the original. Tapes 
which have been interpreted (fig. 68) can be 
proofread against the document from which 
data were extracted. 

Mechanically duplicated tapes, or tapes 
produced as a byproduct, are automatically 
verified by machine circuitry which assures that 
the hole punched in the tape agrees with the 
signal or pulse sent by the originating machine. 


46 


INTERPRETED AND UNINTERPRETED 
PAPER TAPE 

S-PRWBP<HADI^SS-TAPE Ilfl 

eccttccccec* ccc-c-ctceetttctfc 


J > ) 3 > ) 3 

3 3 3 

» > 3 3 3 


THIS IS PRINTED CHADLESS TAPE 

j ) 33333 33 

3 3 3 3 3 

6 6 6 6 6 666666666666 6 6 

3 3 3 3 

3 3 

3 3 3 J i 

G G 

THIS IS CHADLESS TAPE 


• • • • •• • 
• • • • • ••• 

• < 
• • 

• • 

• • •• ••• 

• < 

• 

THIS IS FULLY PERFORATED TAPE 


Fig. 68 


Writing 

Writing is most frequently accomplished in a 
tape-actuated typewriter. Such typewriters 
will— 

• Type by Keyboard Depression 
Typing on an electric typewriter and 

simultaneously producing both a tape 
and a hard copy. Inserting variable 
data is also accomplished by keyboard 
depression when the machine is operat¬ 
ing from a previously produced tape. 

• Read From a Primary Tape 
Typing from a tape containing repetitive 

data which has been previously created 
deliberately or as a byproduct of an¬ 
other operation, but using only one 
reader as input. 

• Read From a Primary and Secondary 

Tape 

Typing repetitive data from a primary 
tape reading unit and a limited amount 
of variable data from a secondary 
reader. The finished product may be 
the result of switching from primary 
to secondary reader several times dur¬ 
ing the writing operation. Figure 69 
illustrates an auxiliary tape reader. 


AUXILIARY TAPE READER 



Fig. 69 


• Read From Dials 

With a secondary reader, setting such 
information as date or invoice number 
in dials to be typed on successive 
documents until the dials are reset. 
One of these readers is illustrated in 
figure 70. 


AUXILIARY TAPE READER 
WITH MANUAL DATA SELECTOR 



47 















• Read From a Punched Card 

Writing from punched cards, when the 

primary tape reader was exchanged 
for a punched-card reader. The sec¬ 
ondary reader, in this case, is used to 
control the space between words and 
the line advance. 

• Search for Coded Data 

With secondary reader, searching and 
selecting variable data contained in its 
tape, either by special codes or by 
manually set switches. Figure 71 il¬ 
lustrates one such unit. 

• Write and Compute 

By merging a tape-actuated typewriter 
with a computing unit into a special¬ 
ized piece of machinery, writing data 
from tapes while a limited amount of 
multiplying, adding, subtracting, and 
dividing is also being accomplished. 
The mathematical results are printed 
out automatically by a signal sent by 
the computing unit. Figure 72 illus¬ 
trates a tape-operated writing-comput¬ 
ing machine. 

Duplicating 

The best known method of duplicating tapes is 
to engage the primary punch of the tape type¬ 
writer, producing a duplicate tape as a by¬ 
product of an operation. This tape is normally 
a complete tape containing all data. Two 
complete tapes can be produced simultaneously 
by connecting a secondary output by cable to 
a tape typewriter. 

To produce a tape containing selected 
data, it is necessary to have programed the 
original tape with punch-on and punch-off 
codes to provide self-control of the duplicating 
operation. If these controls were not pro¬ 
gramed into the original tape, stop-codes must 
be present to permit the operator to engage 
and disengage the punching mechanisms manu¬ 
ally. Using a secondary output, two tapes 
may be made simultaneously. The two tapes 
may be duplicates of each other or each tape 
could contain different selected data, depending 
upon the programing present in the original 
tape. 

Arranging 

Tapes are arranged by hand from some 
identification written on the tape itself. The 


interpretation of the native language onto 
wide tapes permits easier manual arranging. 
Like the narrow tape, wide tapes cannot be 
sequenced by machine. 

Selecting 

Tapes are usually selected manually from tape 
filed in a specified sequence in some type of 
file housing. A limited amount of mechanical 

AUXILIARY TAPE READER 
WITH AUTOMATIC ADDRESS 
SELECTION AND MANUAL DATA 
SELECTOR 



Fig. 71 


48 




A TAPE OPERATED WRITING—COMPUTING AAACHINE 



Fig. 72 


selection can be accomplished on the basis of 
a code punched into the tape when a selective 
secondary input is used. 

Merging 

Tapes to be merged are manually selected and 
collated. The collated tapes are then passed 
through a tape machine in proper sequence to 
produce a merged tape. 

Matching 

Tapes are matched by running them through 
a tape-actuated typewriter and proofreading 
the hard copy. Small pieces of tape may be 
matched visually by sighting through the holes 
of two pieces of tape laid together. 

Counting 

Since tapes must be arranged by hand, counting 
is limited to manual counting. 


Correlating Statistics 

Capturing production-planning data or statisti¬ 
cal data as the byproduct of a necessary office 
or factory operation is often desirable. In 
the factory, for example, capturing several 
items of variable data as the byproduct of a 
manufacturing operation is frequently essential. 
Such data frequently include man data, machine 
data, quantitative data, and time data. 
Machines known as transaction recorders or 
known collectively as data-recording systems 
have the capability to record simultanequsly 
all of these variable factors in a native machine 
language. 

When a data-recording system is used, 
some of the variables must be described in a 
prepunched native language. For example, 
in the factory, such prepunched data include— 


49 





Man Data —Employee number, clock 
number, badge number, and other coded 
data which identify a particular 
employee. 

Machine Da ta —Machine number, machine 
type, and other coded information which 
identify the specific machine a particular 
man is operating. 

Job Data —Job number, project number, 
operation number, accounting data 
(when job cost is part of the required 
analysis), and other coded information 
identifying the work being performed. 

When the prepunched data, similar to that 
previously described, is available, the machine 
used in a data recording system can originate 
variable data as follows: 

Time —Time of arrival or departure of 
employees, time a specific job was 
started and completed, or other essential 
time data, may be recorded from a 
signal emitted from a self-contained 
clock. 

Quantity —Number of items produced, 
number of documents processed, or other 
quantitative data, may be recorded by 
setting dials built into the machine. 

Fixed Variables —Date or other variables 
which are constant for a specified period, 
may be recorded by setting and locking 
dials built into the machine. 

One of the most familiar jobs being per¬ 
formed on data collection systems is production 
planning. Data collection stations are located 
at or near various machines used in a manu¬ 
facturing operation. These stations record 
time and attendance of each employee, time of 
starting and completing each operation, quan¬ 
tity of items completed, and project accounting 
data. During the night, computing equipment 
produces, from the information assembled by 
the data systems machines, the reports neces¬ 
sary for effective management. Reports pre¬ 
pared include a production plan for the next 
day, time and leave status of each employee, 
and cost accounting analysis. 

The principal parts of equipment used for 
correlating statistical data are: 

Self-Contained Data Station —Record¬ 
ing data in a native language at the 
station, figure 73. May be moved from 


A SELF CONTAINED DATA RE¬ 
CORDING STATION FOR 
STATISTICAL CORRELATION 



Fig. 73 


point to point in the production area as 
workload shifts. 

Remote-Recording Data Station —Re¬ 
cording data in a central compiling 
station to which it is connected by a 
multiwire cable, figures 74 and 75. 
Many remote-recording stations may be 
wire connected to a single compiling 
station. 

Badge-Reading Data Station —Attach¬ 
able to either a remote-recording or 
self-contained data collection station, 
figure 76. Utilizes a prepunched plastic 
identification badge. 

Data systems machines may utilize either 
paper tape or punched card as input; they pro¬ 
duce either paper tape or magnetic tape as 
output. Data may be processed through 
conventional punched-card equipment or elec¬ 
tronic computers. 

Computing 

Figure 72 illustrates one type of machine for 
performing mathematical operations with the 
native tape language through the merger of a 
tape-actuated typewriter with a computing 
into a computing typewriter. 

This machine will add, subtract, multiply, 
and divide factors contained in specified fields 
of its calculator, and store or print out (signal¬ 
ing the typewriter to print) the mathematical 


50 





results. Its primary use is for billing or for 
other operations containing mathematics similar 
to a billing operation, such as purchase order 
writing. The table below indicates the mathe¬ 
matical capabilities of this type of equipment. 

Communicating (Communications) 

Standard telecommunication is conducted in 
five-channel paper tape by commercial com¬ 
munications companies. If data are to be 
transmitted over these commercial company 
networks, it may have to be converted to five- 
channel code. (See fig. 61.) 

When Government-furnished machines are 
at each end of an owned or leased network, data 
may be sent in five-, six-, seven-, or eight- 
channel native languages. Figure 77 illustrates 
a tape transmitter-receiver which can transmit 
five-, six-, seven-, or eight-channel coded infor¬ 
mation and can receive in an identical number 
of channels. 


A REMOTE DATA RECORDING 
STATION 



Fig. 74 


Figure 78 illustrates a five-, six-, seven-, or 
eight-channel paper tape transmitter-receiver 
which can be used in conjunction with the Bell 
Telephone Co. Dataphone equipment. With 
this device a sender places a call to a receiving 
number; after contact has been established he 
can turn the transmitter on to send and receive 
tape over the same voice communication lines. 


MATHEMATIC CAPABILITIES 

NET EXTENSION: 

Quanity X Price=Net 

DISCOUNT EXTENSION: 

Quantity X Price ^Net y ^ scount rate ^= Adjusted Net 

100 

GROUP DISCOUNT EXTENSION: 

Quantity X Price 
Quantity X Price 
Quantity X Price 

Sum of above ^Net y D * scount rate ^= Adjusted Group Net 

100 

TRADE DISCOUNT EXTENSION: 

Successive discounts; e.g., Net-10%-2^%-l% = Adjusted Discounted Net 
INVOICE TOTAL 
Sum of— 

Net Extensions + Tax + Shipping == Total, or 
Discount Extensions -f Tax + Shipping=Total 
Group Discount Extension + Tax -f- Shipping=Total 
Trade Discount Extension + Tax + Shipping=Total 
DAILY GRAND TOTAL: 

Grand total of net amount, tax amount, shipping costs, etc., will accumulate in the 
calculator for all documents processed; on call, a summary of the day’s business is 
printed out. 


51 





A CENTRAL COMPILING STATION 
FOR USE WITH REMOTE 
DATA RECORDERS 



Fig. 75 


The receiver can perforate tape and produce 
hard copy simultaneously. 

PERFORMING FUNCTIONS WITH 
PUNCHED CARDS 

Interpreting 

Two types of punched-card interpretations are 
available. First is the use of the printing punch 
which prints the character directly above the 
card column where the punching takes place 
and during the card-punching operation. The 
second method is accomplished by a separate 
pass of the punched card through a separate 
machine known as an interpreter. This permits 
the printing positions to be assigned to card 


A BADGE READING DATA RE¬ 
CORDER 



Fig. 76 

fields different from those in which the actual 
punching exists. 

Figure 79 illustrates a punched card inter¬ 
preted in both fashions. 

Verifying 

Verification of punched cards requires the re- 
punching of the card on another machine, 
preferably by another operator. 

Cards of 80 columns are verified by a 
second operator using a verifier. On the pre¬ 
viously punched cards this operator simulates 
the original keypunching, using the source 
document. If the code for the depressed key 


A TAPE TRANSMITTER UTILIZ¬ 
ING 5, 6, 7, OR 8 CHANNEL TAPE 



Fig. 77 


52 






























A TAPE TRANSMITTER USED IN CONJUCTION WITH A TELEPHONE 



Fig. 78 

AN INTERPRETED PUNCHED CARD 

0123456769 ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVUXYZ 


lllllllll 

lllllllll 

lOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOObOllllllllOOOOO 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 II 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 K 27 21 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 38 37 31 39 4U 41 4: 

1 |l 11111111 11 1111111 111 11 1 111 1 1 1 1 11 1 1 1 1 1 11 
22 | 222222222 | 22222222 | 2222222|222222222222 
333|333333333|33333333|3333333|3333333333 


4444|444444444|44444444|4444444|4444444444 
55555|555555555|55555555|5555555|55555555 


666666|666666GG6|66666S66|6666E66|66Sb6666 

7777777|777777777|77777777|7777777|7777777 


999999999|999999999|99999999|9999999|99999 

l 2 3 4 5 6 7 i 9 1C 11 12 13 14 15 IS 17 12 '9 ->0 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 3» 32 33 34 33 3S 3> 38 30 411 41 42 



999 

13 M *5 « l> *a 13 SO 311 32 S3 SI 


Interpreted Above Punched Columns 


Fig. 79 

53 


Interpreted Re-Arranged 









































agrees with the code punched into the card, the 
machine releases to the next column. If a 
disagreement occurs, the machine locks. In 
this event, the operator repeats the operation 
to be absolutely certain an error really exists. 
If an error exists it is indicated by a mark in 
the appropriate column. A correct card is 
indicated by a notch punched into the edge of 
the card, figure 80. 

Cards of 90 columns are verified with the 
same procedure as 80-column cards except 
that the keypunches are combination machines. 
Pushing a slide on the keypunch converts it 
into a verifying punch. Actual punching 
takes place in the verifying operation. The 
normal round hole is elongated and the operator 
visually inspects the card through a mirror 
arrangement when it is ejected. Round holes 
indicate an error. In addition, a separate 
automatic verifying machine is available. 
Verified punched cards are passed through this 
machine which detects errors. A different- 
colored card is inserted mechanically behind 
the card containing an error, to call it to the 
operator’s attention. 


Mechanically duplicated cards, or cards 
prepared as a byproduct, are not manually 
verified. They are automatically verified by 
machine circuitry which assures that the 
punched hole agrees with the pulse sent out 
by the originating machine. 

Writing 

Writing data recorded in cards are most 
frequently accomplished with a tabulator. 
The tabulator will write recorded facts as— 

Detail Listings. Printing a line of infor¬ 
mation from each card produces a 
detail listing. During the listing opera¬ 
tion the machine may add, subtract, 
cross-add, or cross-subtract to print 
out many different machine-generated 
totals. Figure 81 illustrates a detail 
listing and the typical associated equip¬ 
ment for producing such a listing. 

Group Listings. Group listing is printing 
on a single line the constant information 
concerning a group of unit records, such 
as stock description; and the summary 


VERIFYING PUNCHED CARDS 

Notch Indicating Card Was Verified 



Fig. 80 

54 





































DETAIL WRITING WITH PUNCHED CARD 


IBM Card 

i 



V- 

ACCOUNTING MACHINE 


A Written Line for 
Each Unit Record 


Fig. 81 


of the transactions concerning that 
group, such as issues, receipts, and 
new balance on hand. During this 
operation, information from each card 
is stored in counter units. At the end 
of each group of unit records, totals 
are read out of the counters and printed. 
During the operation, the machine 
may add, subtract, cross-add, or cross¬ 
subtract to produce the machine¬ 
generated totals. Figure 82 illustrates 
a group listing and the typical associated 
equipment for producing such a listing. 

Listings and Punched Cards. While 
printing either a detail listing or group 
listing,the machine can produce a punched 
card containing constant information 
and summarized numeric data. This 
requires that a summary punch or 
document originating machine be cable 
connected to the tabulator. Figure 
50 illustrates a printed report and card 
operation and the typical associated 
equipment used for such an operation. 

When the tabulator is writing recorded 
facts, the sequence of data on detail or group 
listings need not conform to the sequence of 
data as contained in the card. For example, 
data punched in columns 75-80 in the card 
may be more meaningful, useful, and desirable 
to management if printed in columns 1-6 of the 
listing. This shift in position can be accom¬ 


plished by a few changes in the control panel 
of the tabulator. The same thing is true for 
the summary card produced during report and 
card operations. Information may be re¬ 
arranged in punched-card formats by changing 
the control panel of the summary punch. 

Duplicating 

A limited amount of duplicating can be accom¬ 
plished with the keypunch. Data punched 
into one card can be duplicated, one column at 
a time, into the same column of the card or 
cards that follow. (See fig. 51.) Date of 
transaction, for example, once punched correctly 
can be duplicated until a new date is necessary. 

Another technique of duplicating is known 
to the trade as reproducing. In this process, 
punched cards are fed into two hoppers of a 
single machine; one hopper containing cards 
with recorded data and the other containing 
blank cards. The cards are fed synchronously 
from both hoppers. Data (punched holes) are 
duplicated card for card. The data in the 
reproduced deck may be selected data (omitting 
some facts contained in the already punched 
deck) or all of the data. The data in the 
reproduced deck may be rearranged through 
the control panel of the reproducer. Figure 83 
is typical of a reproducing operation with the 
associated machinery. 

Still another method of duplicating is 
known as “gang punching.” In this operation 


55 







































GROUP LISTING (WRITING) WITH PUNCHED CARDS 



Fig. 82 


REPRODUCING PUNCHED CARDS 



DOCUMENT-ORIGINATING 

MACHINE 


Fig. 83 


56 





















































































































a master card (card containing data to be 
duplicated) is placed in front of the number of 
blank cards into which the data are to be 
punched. The assembly, master card and 
blank cards, is then placed into a single hopper 
of the machine for copying. Data from the 
master card are automatically duplicated into 
all blank cards that follow. Duplicating will 
stop when the machine senses a new master 
card. Figure 84 illustrates a typical gang- 
punching operation with its associated 
machinery. 

Arranging 

Punched cards are arranged by a machine 
called a sorter. Figure 85 illustrates a typical 
sorting operation and associated machines. 

Cards are sorted into numerical sequence, 
one column at a time. An 11-digit stock 
number requires 11 passes through the sorter 
to be in complete numerical sequence. 

Since alphabetical information is punched 
with two or more holes in the same column, 
sorting requires two or more separate passes 
through the sorter for each column to achieve 
strict alphabetic sequence. 


Selecting 

Cards are selected either by a sorter or a 
collator. Determination of which machine to 
use is based on the number of cards from which 
selection must be made and the presence or 
absence of specific codes upon which the selec¬ 
tion is to be made. 

Typical selections are— 

• Cards punched with a specific digit or 

character. 

• Certain types of cards for a specific date. 

• Cards higher or lower than a specific 

number. 

• Cards between two specific numbers or 

dates. 

• First or last card of a group of item 

records. 

• Unmatched cards (when matching one 

deck against another deck). 

• Cards out of sequence, either numerical 

or alphabetical. 

Figure 86 illustrates a typical selection 
operation and the associated equipment. 


GANG PUNCHING CARDS 



DOCUMENT-ORIGINATING 

MACHINE 


Fig. 84 

57 


SUMMARY PUNCH 





































































ARRANGING PUNCHED CARDS 



Fig. 85 


SELECTING PUNCHED CARDS 


ELECTRONIC STATISTICAL MACHINE 




j 4 Deta 

4 Master 


3 Detail 


3 Detail 


3 Detail 


3 Master 


2 Detail 


4 Master 


SORTER 


2 Detail 


3 Master 


2 Master 


2 Master 


COLLATOR 


Fig. 86 

58 
























































































Merging 

Merging punched cards is accomplished with 
the collator. Two separate decks of cards, each 
in the same sequence, are placed into two input 
hoppers. The machine advances cards from 
each deck independently, tests each card to 
determine which is of the higher numeric or 
alphabetic order, and passes the card of the 
lower order. The machine feeds another card 
Trom the hopper which has just passed a card 
and performs the same checking operation 
again, checking against the card which was 
held from the first check. Thus, the two decks 
of cards are merged into a single sequence in 
the receiving hopper. 

A typical merging operation with associated 
equipment is shown in figure 87. 

Matching 

Groups of cards in one deck are matched or 
compared with similar groups in a second deck 
by means of a collator. Unmatched cards in 
either deck may be separated. 

Matching is frequently performed in con¬ 
junction with merging. Cards in one deck are 


merged with a matching card in the other deck; 
at the same time cards which are not matched 
by a like card are selected from the deck. 
Figure 88 illustrates a typical matching and 
selecting operation. 

Correlating Statistics 

Discussion of data collection systems equipment 
is contained in the section “Performing Func¬ 
tions With Punched Paper Tape.” Machines 
can use either punched cards or punched tape 
as input. 

Counting 

Counting can be accomplished with the sorter. 
Each sorter pocket can be equipped with a 
counting device to record the number of cards 
in that pocket. The feed hopper can also be 
equipped with a counter to record the number 
of cards that have passed through the machine. 
Thus, the totals of the cards in each pocket can 
be summed up to equal the number that have 
passed through the machine. 

Another piece of equipment, commonly 
used for counting recorded facts, is known as 


MERGING PUNCHED CARDS 




Fig. 87 
59 



















































the statistical sorting machine. This machine 
consists of a sorter and a stripped-down tabu¬ 
lator capable of performing limited mathemat¬ 
ical operations and limited printing. Among 
its functions the machine sorts, counts, checks 
for consistency, adds, and produces printed 
summaries. When not is use to perform statis¬ 
tical work, this machine can be used as a 
conventional sorter. Figure 89 shows such 
machine. 

Computing 

The type of computation required determines 
the type and models of punched card computing 
machines used. 

A tabulator, such as that illustrated in 
figure 81, will, for example— 

• ADD any field punched in a series of 
cards until a signal is received from 
the machine that a minor class break 
has occurred (e.g., a change in stock 
number). 


• SUBTOTAL any field punched in a 

series of cards until a signal is received 
from the machine that an intermediate 
class break has occurred (e.g., a change 
in a group of stock numbers). 

• TOTAL any field punched in a series of 

cards until a signal is received from the 
machine that a major class break has 
occurred (e.g., a change itn a class of 
stock numbers). 

• GRAND TOTAL any field punched in a 

series of cards until all of the cards in 
that particular job have been com¬ 
pleted (e.g., the dollar value of all 
stock items issued today). 

• SUBTRACT any field punched in a 

series of cards to affect the addition, 
subtotal, total, and/or grand total of 
that field. A signal (hole punched 
somewhere in the card) must indicate 
that the quantity is to be subtracted. 


MATCHING PUNCHED CARDS 



Fig. 88 
60 


COLLATOR 




























































COUNTING AND STATISTICS WITH PUNCHED CARDS 



Fig. 89 


• CROSS-FOOT add or subtract across a 

single line entry to arrive at an 
updated total for that line (e.g., 
opening balance—shipments+receipts 
=new balance for an item of stock). 

Any totals can be printed on the report 
being prepared by the tabulator or can be 
punched in a summary card. Both products 
can be obtained simultaneously when a sum¬ 
mary punch is connected to the tabulator. 
(See fig. 50.) 

The printed result of mathematical opera¬ 
tions may be located immediately below a 
column of figures, as on an adding machine tape; 
or may be located on another part of the line 
to make the result outstanding, as on a book¬ 
keeping ledger. 

With the addition of another piece of 
punched card equipment, the calculating punch, 
multiplication and division can also be 
performed. 

Factors to be calculated may be— 

• Read from a single card. 

• Read from a series of cards. 


• Emitted by devices within the machine. 

• Developed by the accumulation of a 

series of results of calculations. 

With the calculating punch, as its name 
signifies, the final result or intermediate results 
are punched into a card for processing by other 
punched-card machines and are not printed di¬ 
rectly to a report. 

Cable connecting the tabulator, the calcu¬ 
lating punch, and a storage unit produces an 
assembly of punched-card equipment known as 
a card-programed-calculator. When this is 
used, the tabulator reads from the punched 
cards the factors for calculation and the instruc¬ 
tion codes. The factors and instructions are 
than introduced into the several cable-con¬ 
nected machines. Calculations are performed 
in accordance with the instructions. The 
storage unit makes possible the holding of figures 
until they are needed in the calculations. Upon 
completion of the calculations, results may be 
printed on a report by the tabulator, punched 
into a card by the calculating punch, or both. 


61 


















































Figure 90 illustrates a card-actuated typing 
calculator. Functions performed by this ma¬ 
chine are similar to those described for the 
tape-actuated computing typewriter. 

Communicating 

Data on punched cards may be sent over a 
communications network and recorded at the 
other end on punched cards. If volume trans¬ 
mission is required, machines called trans¬ 
ceivers are used to serve both transmitting 
and receiving functions. Figure 91 is typical 
of a transceiver. 

If a small number of cards is involved in 
transmission, Bell Telephone Co.’s Dataphone 
may be used. This operates in the same 
manner as previously described for trans¬ 
mission of data from tapes. 


A PUNCHED CARD ACTUATED 
WRITING—COMPUTING MACHINE 



Fig. 90 


TRANSMISSION OF PUNCHED CARDS 



Fig. 91 


62 


















VI. FINDING AND DEVELOPING 
APPLICATIONS 


Finding and developing a source data auto¬ 
mation application is not different, to any 
great degree, from any other paperwork sys¬ 
tems project. A systems analysis is required. 
Certain portions of that analysis and study, 
however, take on added significance when the 
potential of mechanization is included. 

WHAT IS SYSTEMS ANALYSIS? 

Systems analysis is the examination, in detail, 
of the functions, routines, procedures, and 
methods, which go to make up a system, and 
the organization which fathers the system. 
The analysis includes defining a problem area, 
describing existing ways of performing work, 
exposing the deficiencies of those ways, deter¬ 
mining what the real needs are, systematiz¬ 
ing present operations, and developing new 
means to accomplish program objectives. 

Frequently a systems analysis is under¬ 
taken to apply the techniques of source data 
automation. It must be remembered, how¬ 
ever, that a paperwork study should have as 
its objective systems improvement, not nec¬ 
essarily automation. No one advocates mech¬ 
anization for the glamour of owning automated 
equipment. The systems study undertaken to 
consider the possibilities of mechanization 
offers an opportunity to eliminate inefficien¬ 
cies in existing methods and procedures, even 
when the final conclusion does not support 
mechanization. The time spent on systems 
analysis is not wasted when mechanization is 
not the final result—other systems improve¬ 
ments will usually pay for the effort. 

This chapter will not be full-scale in¬ 
struction on how to conduct a systems analysis. 
That is a subject entirely too broad for treat¬ 
ment here. Rather,, the chapter briefly re¬ 
views the major systems areas which merit 
greater study when source data automation 
becomes involved in the solution of a problem. 

FINDING THE AREA TO STUDY 

Clues to the need for paperwork systems studies 
include, among other things, difficulty in 
obtaining needed documents or information, 


peak workloads requiring excessive overtime, 
inability of a step in the paperwork cycle to 
keep pace with the other related operations, 
high error rates, inaccurate information, and 
so on. Within these broad clues to potential 
improvements, however, there are specific 
clues that lead to source data automation as a 
potential solution to problems. 

What To Look For 

The four clues to potential source data automa¬ 
tion applications are— 

• Repetition. 

• Volume. 

• Urgency. 

• Errors. 

The first two of these clues will always be 
present in potential source data automation 
situations—they are by far the most important 
considerations. Someone has said: “Repeti¬ 
tion is the key to source data automation, and 
volume the justification for the change and the 
procurement of necessary equipment.” 

The last two of these clues may or may not 
be found, but if they are found they usually 
add to the justification for automation. Occa¬ 
sionally, they may even outweigh volume as a 
justification, though volume is usually also 
present. 

Repetition 

What is meant by repetition? The typist 
in a stenographic pool prepares letters all day 
long. Her work may look to her like repetition, 
one letter after another all day long. Her 
work, though incessant, is not suited to auto¬ 
mation. The kind of repetition that offers 
possibilities for source data automation is 
repetition of data, not repetitive tasks. The 
typist may have repetitive data, if pattern 
paragraphs can be used to answer a substantial 
portion of the correspondence, but not if each 
letter is different and must be individually 
composed to fit each case. 

Examples of the types of repetitive data 
found in potential source data automation 
applications are the same name, address, date 


63 


of birth, sex, and nearest of kin; the same 
stock number, stock description, shipping 
point, and destination of shipped material; 
or the same project number, project description, 
expenditure account number, and project status. 
This repetitive data may be written two, three, 
four, or even a thousand times during a paper¬ 
work cycle. 


LOOK for T^PeTiTiON 

REPETITIVE USE OF DATA 
VoT REPETITIVE TASKS 



Fig. 92 


There are several different categories of 
repetition, including: 

Form-To-Form Repetition The transfer of 
repetitive data from one form in a paperwork 
system to another form in the same system 
is a common type of repetition. The repeti¬ 
tive data may be placed in another location 
on the second form, additional data may be 
added, or only part of the repetitive data may 
be used. 


QQ KePeT iTlOH 



JOHN & 

> m 
57I 



Fig. 93 


An employee first reporting for duty is 
confronted with form-to-form repetition. He 
repeats his name, address, age, social security 
number, marital status, and sex several times 
over as he fills in form after form. The 
items are not always in the same location on 
each form, nor in the same sequence on each 
form. Only part of the information is needed 
on some of the forms. But the answers are 
the same each time—repetitive data. 

Other common paperwork cycles which 
contain highly repetitive data include procure¬ 
ment, project progress reporting, work measure¬ 
ment, accounting, and disbursement. Most 
of these systems require the same data on 
many different forms serving many different 
purposes. 

Recurrent Repetition Recurrent repetition, 
as used here, means use of repetitive data 
over and over on the same form in a paperwork 
system. Each time the form is used it may 
contain data different from that appearing the 
preceding time. However, an analysis of 
many of the forms might show the same data 
appearing occasionally or at regular intervals. 
Perhaps the best example of this type of 
recurrent repetition is an invoice. The cus¬ 
tomer identification remains the same even 
though a sale is not made to him every day. 
It remains constant regardless of the items of 
merchandise sold him on a particular day. 
The item description of the merchandise 
remains the same regardless of the customer to 
whom sold. These are examples of recurrent 
data. The quantity, the price, the extension 


£ f T^ePeTiTiON 



Fig. 94 


64 



































and the discount may vary from sale to sale, 
from customer to customer. 

Other paperwork cycles which contain 
recurrent repetitive data include purchase- 
order writing, personnel promotion and reas¬ 
signment, contract preparation, shipment and 
back-order writing, and correspondence answer- 
able by pattern paragraphs. 

Sta tis tical Repe tition Here is a more illusive 
type of repetition than those types discussed 
before. It is the repetition of numbers, which 
may lose their identity in summaries at different 
levels of agency organization. 

Perhaps the best example of statistical 
repetition is that usually found in reporting 
progress on some project. The production fig¬ 
ures of the employees at the bottom of a 
reporting ladder become lost as they are ab¬ 
sorbed in the cumulative figures sent forward. 

Even though the original figures appear to 
have been lost, they are actually still involved. 
Hence, repetitive data is still present. 

Other paperwork cycles which contain sta¬ 
tistical repetition include work measurement, 
fiscal accounting, performance recording, and 
stock-class accounting. 



Fig. 95 

Volume 

What is volume? How much volume is ade¬ 
quate to justify source data automation? The 
clerk in one office has a high stack of papers on 
his desk. Is this the kind of volume adapted 
to automation? Probably not. The kind of 
volume that lends itself to automation is the 
volume of repetitive data, not total workload. 



00 Volume 

LARGE AMOUNT OF REPETITION 
VoT TOTAL WORKLOAD 


Fig. 96 

Repetition of data is the key to a potential 
source data automation application, and volume 
of repetitive data is the principal justification. 
There are several different categories of volume: 

Gross Volume Gross volume includes use of 
repetitive data from form to form, recurrent rep¬ 
etition, or both. The number of times that 
repetitive data are used in a complete paperwork 
cycle is the key to potential automation. 

The best examples of gross volume are the 
previously discussed operations of the personnel 
records and the invoicing operation. Perhaps 
only a small portion of the complete data is 
repetitive, but the number of forms used per 
day, or the number of different forms on which 
the data appear, soon builds up sufficient gross 
volume of repetitive data to justify source data 
automation. 



Fig. 97 


65 


























Dispersed Volume Many of the typists in 
a personnel typing pool have a pile of varied 
forms and letters to type each day. Part 
of the daily volume for each girl is a number of 
Standard Form 50’s to be prepared. Any 
one desk does not have sufficient volume of 
these forms to justify source data automation. 
However, repetitive data are present in volume; 
it is simply dispersed among the individual 
typists. Concentration of the form 50’s at 
one desk of the typing pool may produce 
sufficient volume to justify source data auto¬ 
mation. 

Repetition in dispersed volume is often 
difficult to recognize. It may be beyond the 
confines of one room. It may cross section, 
bureau, division, branch, or agency organiza¬ 
tional lines. It may even be dispersed between 
industry and the Government or between 
Federal agencies and the people they serve. 

Examples of dispersed volume include 
reporting of earnings to social security, checking 
on old age and survivors benefit eligibility, 
billing insurance premiums, and purchasing of 
stock items. 



Fig. 98 


Urgency 

The typist in an office has a desk full of typing 
that must get out before the close of business 
today. Is this the kind of urgency looked for? 
Certainly this job appears to have urgency and 
volume, but not necessarily enough volume of 
repetitive data. 

When other conditions have been met, 
source data automation can help offices to meet 


realistic deadlines. Automation can be partic¬ 
ularly useful where periodic peakloads are 
involved. Frequently, for example, project 
progress reports from field offices to a central 
office reflect conditions at the close of a month. 
These statistics must be keypunched for 
machine analysis before the fifth day of the 
next month, if the report is to be timely and 
useful to management. Certainly this kind of 
operation has the sought-for repetitive data, 
repetitive volume, and urgency. Perhaps, the 
data could be source data automated in the 
field offices, eliminating the urgent keypunching 
operation in the central office. 


0 0 Volume pi 


==i 


% 

i 

is* 

—r 

m 



IU 

f 


Fig. 99 

At times the work of several employees is 
checked for accuracy by a single reviewer; 
then it flows to several more employees for the 
next step in the operation. That review may 
be creating a bottleneck, no matter how 
important the task. Perhaps automating the 
work of the employees can eliminate the 
check and break the bottleneck. 

A wage earner is retired from his job. 
He applies for his pension. He awaits patiently 
the check due him on the first of the month. 
In fact he may be desperately in need of the 
money for the essentials of life. Source data 
automation may make it easier for the office to 
meet this deadline. 

Urgency is usually not in itself sufficient 
justification for source data automation. Often 
however, urgency stimulates inspection of the 
paperwork cycle, which in turn reveals sufficient 
volume of repetitive data to justify automation. 


66 
































Fig. 100 


Errors 

An invoicing clerk typed the form shown in 
figure 101. That error cost $135. A math¬ 
ematical error, to be sure, but one which a 
machine would not have made. 

A stenographer was told to type the 
bottom line, shown in figure 102. She wrote 
the top one instead; once in the mail, the doc¬ 
ument became a binding letter of intent, a 
costly error. 

Correction of errors of this nature is not 
sufficient reason for source data automation, 
unless thay involve repetitive data. Human 
errors occur in the handling of volume re¬ 
petitive data—errors of transcription, trans¬ 
position, or mathematical computation. These 
are errors that a machine, properly operated 
from a native language, will not make. 


00 mORS 


Areas which warrant further exploration 
for errors are the typing of stock numbers, 
phone numbers, social security identification, 
employee number, project numbers, and so on. 


00 mORS 

RANSCRIPTION ERRORS 


YOUR $4,000,000 CONTRACT IS W APPROVED 
YOUR $4,000,000 CONTRACT IS i T APPROVED 



Fig. 102 


Where To Look 

The question of what to look for inevitably 
raises the question of where to look. Where 
are repetition, volume, urgency, and error to 
be found? 

Potential applications of source data auto¬ 
mation can turn up anywhere. Several places, 


SOURCE SPOT OF AUTOMATION 

It has become more and more apparent 
that with the planning and installation of 
grandiose electronic data processing equip¬ 
ment, too little attention has been devoted 
to the concepts and techniques of source 
data automation. 

This inattention to capturing and process¬ 
ing data in machine language at the source 
has led to serious problems and increased 
costs in some of our Navy EDP systems 

The time to apply source data automation 
to our integrated information systems is 
long overdue. Why not realize the benefits 
of source data automation by ( 1 ) recording 
information at the point of origin in order 
to utilize the full potential of our electronic 
data processing machines, and (2) record 
and process data at the source in order to 
capitalize on the advantages of automation 
at the operating level? 


MATHEMATICAL ERRORS 


QUANTITY PRICE AMOUNT 

3,000 $.05 $15.00 



QUANTITY PRICE [ AMOUNT 

3,000 $.05 $150.00 


Fig. 101 


67 


Figure 103 











however, are almost certain to be hiding 
possibilities, waiting to be found. 

No doubt, most of the existing source 
data automation applications were found in 
one or more of the following places: 

• Where native languages are deliberately 

produced. 

• Where information is recorded about— 

Persons. 

Places. 

Things. 

• Where two or more machines are used 

in a paperwork chain. 

• Where more than one form is used in 

a system. 

• Where statistical reports originate. 

Deliberately Producing Native Languages 
Papers flowing into a machine processing room, 
tabulating section, data-processing center, 
punched-card room, or similar area are coming 
there for one purpose: translation into a native 
language, such as punched card, punched tape, 
or magnetic tape, for further machine process¬ 
ing. The Department of the Navy, in figure 
103 published in the Navy Management Review 
of August 1958, recognized this fact. 

It is reasonably certain that any job being 
performed in a machine-processing section has 
repetitive data in sufficient volume to justify 
source data automation. Someone found these 
clues in the past, in order to get the job into 
the machine-processing operation. Now the 
problem is moving the automation, the captur¬ 
ing of data, closer to the source. Perhaps the 
data could be captured as a byproduct of a 
necessary operation, or even placed into a 
native machine language by the originator. 

The slowest, most tedious, and most costly 
operation in a machine-processing section is the 
manual depression of the keys of a machine to 
translate data into a native machine language. 
The accuracy of all future results depends upon 
the accuracy of keypunching and key verifying. 
If the personnel who have a vital interest in the 
data can create a native language, as the by¬ 
product of a necessary operation, the accuracy 
of machine results will be increased. 

Recording Data About Persons, Places, or 
Things. Many of the source data automation 
systems operating today involve the use 
of data concerning persons, places, and things. 



Fig. 104 

Personnel offices, both civilian and military, 
have found it advantageous to capture personnel 
identification in a native machine language. 

Transportation offices have discovered applica¬ 
tions involving shipping data, consignee data, 
and carrier routing, which have reduced their 
operating costs. Supply and contract offices 
have found automation helpful in requisitioning, 
receipting, and managing inventories. 

Two or More Machines in a Paperwork 
Chain. Whenever two or more machines are 
involved in the same paperwork chain, it is 
almost certain that data are being written a 
second, third, or fourth time. It is repetitive 
data that could be source data automated. 

The first person in the systems cycle, figure 
105, may use a typewriter to create a document; 
the second may use a calculator to compute 



Fig. 105 


68 














statistics or extensions on the document; and 
the third may retype part of the document with 
summary totals. The cycle is then repeated 
from office to office. 

Application of the technique of source data 
automation can often permit bypassing the 
second or third machine; or byproducts pro¬ 
duced in a native machine language at the 
first operation can operate the second or third 
machine. 

More Than One Form in a System. One 
of the first types of repetition discussed in this 
chapter is the “ form-to-form repetition ” of 
data. Thus it follows that a logical place to 
look for source data automation potential is 
where two or more forms are used in a paper¬ 
work chain. 



Fig. 106 

It is almost a certainty that, if more than 
one form is used in a paperwork cycle, data 
will be repeated from form to form. All or 
part of the data recorded on the first form will 
be transcribed to the second; the data, all or 
in part, from the second to the third; the data 
from the third to the fourth and so on. 

Source data automation can often mechani¬ 
cally produce the repetitive data onto the 
second or third form involved. The chances 
are that in any form handled daily there is a 
potential application. 

Originating Statistical Reports. Adminis¬ 
trators, whether of sections, branches, divisions, 
or agencies, need reports to run their organiza¬ 
tions effectively. These reports to management 
start a tremendous paperwork operation. 



Fig. 107 


In almost all statistical reporting, data are 
consolidated at every echelon of organization, 
for passing up the line. Much of the data is 
repeated over and over. All that changed was 
the summarization of several individual reports 
into one report. An effective technique in¬ 
volves passing the data directly from the 
originator to a point as far up the line as pos¬ 
sible. Data are then digested at this point, and 
summary data transmitted to the echelons that 
were bypassed. More accurate reports are 
thus obtained at each level, and more timely 
reports are available for the higher levels of 
management. 

CONDUCTING THE STUDY 

Supervisors have a tendency to omit or overlook 
some vital factor in a paperwork chain when 
they develop revised methods. For prevention 
of loss of some vital data or factor of the paper¬ 
work cycle, the facts obtained by a systems 
study should be in writing. Frequently an 
overlooked item gives rise to much additional 
work, causes a procedure modification, or even 
destroys the validity of the whole effort. 

Figure 108 summarizes the many facets of a 
systems study. Factors are also reflected in 
the chart which must be taken into account if 
the application is designed to capture data for 
ultimate use in a computer. 

The importance of obtaining facts about 
the job directly from the working level cannot 
be over emphasised. Interviews with officials 
and working-level personnel can succeed in 
gaining their support of methods improvements. 


69 












FACETS OF A SYSTEMS STUDY 



00 

o 

6 ) 

• 

Li. 


70 






















































































A Total Systems Study 

Frequently source data automation applica¬ 
tions cross section, branch, division, office, or 
even agency organizational lines. Thus, one 
of the first considerations is the need for a study 
of a total system. 

A systems study would prove ineffective if, 
in automating one step of a paperwork cycle, 
it complicated another step in the cycle. If it 
destroyed, unwittingly, the existing mechani¬ 
zation of a step of the system, it could be costly. 
It is imperative therefore that every detail of the 
entire paperwork cycle be fully understood; 
that the effect of the system on related paper¬ 
work, reports, operations, and organizational 
structures be clearly foreseen. 

A total systems study of the paperwork 
cycle may result in— 


• Elimination of the operation or elimina¬ 

tion of steps in the complete paperwork 
cycle. 

• Reorganization to bring together ade¬ 

quate volume to justify mechanization. 

• Drastic change in the basic approach to 

the entire paperwork system. 

Data Analysis 

Another element of a systems study to take 
on added significance is that of data analysis. 
Frequently bits of data have been collected 
because someone thought they would be nice 
to have; that someday someone might ask for 
them. Data collected in an automated system 
must serve some useful and productive purpose, 
if the effort expended for its collection is to be 
justified. On the other hand, all data essential 


REQUISITION—SDA1 


APPROPRIATION CHARGEABLE 

REQUISITION DATE 

REQUISITION NO. 


GO. 1102-2. 41'501 . 262 

15 April 1962 

39101-108 


TO 

SHIP TO 


United States Automation Agency 
Washington 25, R.C. 


MARK FOR 

Training department 

ORGANIZATION 

Records Mgmt. 

F. 0. B 

Shipping Point 

DATE REQUIRED 

ROUTING 

TERMS 

QUOTATION APPROVED BY 

15 May 1962 

Air Express 

30 Eays Net 

John Smith 

ITEM 

1 

QUANTITY 

12 

NOMENCLATURE AND DESCRIPTION 

265-9847. 

Films (SDA Workshop) 

PRICE 


SDA 1 







Fig. 109 


71 




















REQUEST FOR QUOTATION—SDA2 


APPROPRIATION CHARGEABLE 

CO. 1102-2. 41501. 262 


QUOTATION DATE 

16 April 1962 


TO 


( Various Vendors ) 


QUOTATION NO. 

39101-108 


SHIP TO 


United States Automation Agency 
Washington 25? D.C. 


MARK FOR 

Training department 

ORGANIZATION 

Records Mgmt. 

F. 0. B. 

Shipping Point 

DATE REQUIRED 

15 May 1962 

ROUTING 

Air Express 

TERMS 

30 Days Net 

QUOTATION APPROVED BY 

E. A. Jones 


ITEM 



NOMENCLATURE ANO DESCRIPTION 

265-9847. 

Films (SPA Workshop) 


PRICE 


SDA 2 


Fig. 110 


to the end products of a paperwork cycle must 
be available. It must be recorded in a native 
language to take full advantage of the automatic 
equipment selected for the job. 

One of the best ways to determine the data 
that are repetitive is to assemble a complete 
set of all of the forms currently used in the 
paperwork system—filled in for every item of 
information. Areas on the forms which contain 
data that are repeated from form to form are 
colored in. Care should be exercised to get 
the repetitive data, not necessarily the re¬ 
petitive item identifications. Varying title 
or item identifications may be used to record 
repetitive data in the various steps of a paper¬ 
work cycle. Although the identification used 
on a different form may vary, the filled-in 
data are identical. On the four forms shown 
as figures 109, 110, 111, and 112, various 
captions are used to identify the same filled-in 
data. 


In the analysis, all data from all forms 
involved in the paperwork system are recorded 
on a “Recurring Data Analysis Chart” (Op¬ 
tional Form 18). Figure 113 is a chart of 
this nature, filled in for the four forms pre¬ 
viously mentioned. 

Coloring-in the areas containing identical 
data establishes the data which is repetitive 
and which lends itself to being recorded in a 
native machine language. Recording the data 
on a “Recurring Data Analysis Chart” identi¬ 
fies the number of times each item is repeated. 
It also establishes the point of first writing for 
each item of repetitive data, the point where 
the data are best recorded in a native machine 
language. 

Reports Evaluation 

The fact that a report is presently prepared in 
a specified manner, with certain information, 
does not necessarily justify its continuance. 


72 






















The fact that a report does not presently exist 
is no indication that management does not need 
a report of that nature and with that infor¬ 
mation. In developing a paperwork system, 
it is frequently necessary to start with the 
information needed by management, in the 
form of reports, and to work backwards to 
the data needed to assemble or construct such 
reports. 

First, a set of reports prepared during the 
paperwork cycle is assembled. The data in 
the reports are analyzed in the same manner 
as the data in the forms used in the total 
system. The next step is a preparation of 
“Recurring Data Analysis Chart,” which keys 
the items of data in the reports to their source 
in the forms. It should now be determined 
how data appearing in reports but not in forms 
are developed—whether by mathematical op¬ 
erations, by data manipulation such as file 
updating, or by procedural controls such as 


insertion of a constant by the machine. 

Management of the organizations affected 
is consulted to determine whether essential 
reports are missing, were not prepared because 
they took too much time, or were too expensive. 
Frequently reports of this nature are achievable 
with mechanized equipment. If new reports 
are furnished, do they supersede any presently 
prepared reports? 

DEVELOPING THE NEW SYSTEM 

Unfortunately, few general principles of sys¬ 
tems development are available. Perhaps the 
greatest ingredient of the development of any 
paperwork system is imagination—the ability 
to visualize the capabilities of various machines, 
to picture the use of a selected machine to 
handle a specific problem, and to determine 
the feasibility of a new approach. 

Not all persons are endowed with the same 
degree of imagination. Where one can imagine 


PURCHASE ORDER—SDA3 


APPROPRIATION CHARGEABLE 

CO. 1102-2. 41501 . 262 

PO. DATE 

26 April 1962 

P.O. NO 

39101-1 08 

TO 

(The low bidder from among 
the various vendors) 

SHIP TO 

United States Automation Agency 
Washington 25? D.C. 

MARK FOR 

Training department 

ORGANIZATION 

Records Mgmt. 

F. 0 B p 

Shipping Pointer 

DATE REQUIRED ROUTING 

15 May 1962 Air Express 

TERMS 

30 Days Net 

VENDOR'S NO 

PO - 1808 - 502 


ITEM 


QUANTITY 

12 


NOMENCLATURE ANO DESCRIPTION 

265 - 9847 . 

Films (SDA Workshop) 


PRICE 


120.00 


SDA 3 


Fig. Ill 


73 





















RECEIVING REPORT—SDA4 


APPROPRIATION CHARGEABLE 

CO. 1102-2. 41501. 262 

P.O. DATE 

26 April 1962 

P.O. NO. 

39101-108 

RECEIVED FROM 

(The low bidder from among 
the various vendors) 

SHIP TO 

United States Automation Agency 
Washington 25? D.C. 

MARK FOR 

Training department 

ORGANIZATION 

Records Mgmt. 

F. 0. B. p 

Shipping Point ^ 

DATE REQUIRED ROUTING 

15 May 1962 Air Express 

TERMS 

30 Days Net 

VENDOR'S NO. 

PO - 1808 - 502 


ITEM 


QUANTITY 

12 


NOMENCLATURE AND DESCRIPTION 

265 - 9847 . 

Films (SDA Workshop) 



QUANTITY 

ACCEPTED 


QUANTITY 

REJECTED 


SDA 4 


Fig. 112 


the possibility of solving his problem by a 
mechanical means, from origin of data to its 
ultimate uses in a computer, another with the 
same facts may be' able only to visualize a 
streamlined conventional manual method. 
Where one can imagine a completely new ap¬ 
proach to a paperwork problem, eliminating 
many steps of a paperwork cycle and many 
reports, another may be able to make only 
minor procedural improvements in the old and 
tried system. 

The possibilities of source data automation 
are limited only by the imagination of those 
who conduct systems studies needed. It may 
be profitable, however, to point out here some 
areas of systems development on which greater 
emphasis must be placed when source data 
automation is considered. 

Considering a Specialty Form 

Perhaps the first question to be answered in 
the development of a new system would be, 


“Is equipment really needed?” Perhaps a 
specialty form will provide a desirable solution 
without new or automated equipment. 

Specialty forms often permit the writing 
of all data at one time onto many different 
forms fastened together into a single set. 
Separating the form-set into smaller parts 
(smaller form-sets) often permits adding data 
during further processing in the paperwork 
cycle. Factors affecting the construction of 
specialty forms include— 

Eliminating Data From Some Forms in the Set 
by— 

• Varying the length or width of some of 

the parts of the set. 

• Varying the length or width of some of 

the carbon papers in the set. 

• Devising carbon blockouts. 

• Using strip carbons or spot carbons. 

• Sensitizing parts of the set in selected 

spots by carbon backing. 


74 
























RECURRING DATA ANALYSIS CHART 


PAGE OF PAGES 



Fig. 113 


75 

























































































Separating the Form Into— 

• Individual copies. 

• Smaller sets for further processing of 

each (small set) independently. 

Getting a Sufficient Number of Copies by— 

• Using carbonless paper to reduce the 

bulk of the form set. 

• Using an offset master, hectograph mas¬ 

ter, or die impressed stencil to— 

Produce both form and variable 
data simultaneously onto blank 
paper. 

Print into specific locations on 
preprinted paper forms by the 
manner of positioning different 
forms in the duplicating machine. 

Eliminate certain data from some 
forms either by the manner of 
positioning the forms in the dup¬ 
licator or by blocking out certain 
areas on the master. 

• Generating a new offset master for 

further processing with some data 

added at a later date. 

Like the whole area of systems develop¬ 
ment, the design of specialty forms to meet the 
requirements of specific paperwork systems is 
limited only by the imagination of the designer. 

Selecting the Medium 

The next consideration in systems development 
is the selection of the medium to carry the 
native language. The medium is the basic 
starting point for devising the new system and 
for selecting the specific models of equipment 
needed. 

Each medium, tapes, cards, tags, and 
so on, has advantages that are valid only when 
considered in the light of a specific source 
data automation application. Chapters III 
through VI of this handbook outline the 
advantages of each medium and the specific 
functions that are machinable with such 
medium. The advantages of each medium 
must be carefully considered in comparison with 
the specific needs of a paperwork system. 
Figure 114 shows how some of the analysis of 
the medium might be reduced to writing. 


ANALYSIS OF VARIOUS MEDIA FOR A 
PARTICULAR SYSTEM 


FACTORS 

PAPER 

TAPES 

WIDE 

TAPES 

(edge 

PUNCHED 

cards) 

PUNCHED 

CARDS 

Sorting. 


O 

X 

Random Access. 


o 

X 

Capacity. 

X 

o 


Visual Reading. 


O 


Recording Speed.... 

X 

O 


Writing Speed. 



X 

Equipment Expense. 

X 

X 


Byproduct of forms 
writing at the 
source. 

X 



Portability. 

? 


? 

Computation. 



X 


Key: X—best. 

O—next best. 


Figure 114 

Selecting Specific Equipment 

The final consideration in systems development 
is the determination of the specific make and 
model of equipment to meet the desired systems 
improvement. Descriptions of available makes 
and models are contained in “Source Data 
Automation Equipment Guide,” a companion 
publication of this handbook. 

Selection of equipment is frequently influ¬ 
enced by the equipment already owned or 
operated by the agency. Compatibility of 
equipment is likely to save money in the long 
run. Operators are already familiar with the 
operating principles and techniques of the 
existing equipment. Additional training on 
the new models may be required, but it is sel¬ 
dom necessary to conduct a complete training 
program. Compatibility eliminates much con¬ 
version from one native language to another or 
from one medium to another. 

Equipment selected for the paperwork 
system must have adequate capacity and 
sufficient gadgets to perform all of the necessary 
operations without over- or under-mechani¬ 
zation. Each basic model of equipment has 
the ability to perform specified functions. 


76 

























Additional functions can often be performed 
by cable connecting an auxiliary device or 
by building in some additional gadget. Pro¬ 
curement of these additional devices is un¬ 
economical unless a real need for them is 
present in the requirements of the system. 
On the other hand, many of the additional 
devices require factory installation. Omitting 
the device at time of purchase can be costly 
in the long run. 

In the selection of equipment give careful 
consideration to capturing information as the 
byproduct of a basic processing step. Effort 
should be made to eliminate the need for human 
intervention in an automated system. Full 
advantage should be taken of the automated 
features of the various makes and models of 
equipment. 

Costs of the present (manual or semi- 
mechanized) system should be compared with 
those of the prospective system and with 
alternate prospective systems using other ma¬ 
chines or media. It is necessary to consider the 
cost of rental, purchase, and lease-purchase 
arrangements for the equipment. The pro¬ 
curement plan that is economically sound for 
the particular paperwork system studied should 
be selected. Usually the purchase or rental 
of equipment should be amortized within 3 
years by savings in personnel, time, or other 
operational costs. If the equipment does 
not amortize in this period of time, probably 
only a portion of the paperwork system was 
studied, not a total system. It is also 
possible that other potential source data 
automation applications in the same organi¬ 
zation can share the cost of equipment procure¬ 
ment or rental. 

Need for employee training influences 
selection of the make and model of equipment. 
The availability of training should be checked, 
if any is required. Will it be conducted by the 
equipment manufacturer with a standard 
training program or will it be necessary for the 
agency to develop in-house training programs? 
The amount of training necessary depends on 
the complexity of the equipment selected for 
the paperwork system, as well as on the amount 
of procedural change made in the system. 

After a tentative equipment selection has 
been made, it is desirable to see a demonstration 
of that equipment actually performing the 


agency’s paperwork problem. Such demon¬ 
strations may be performed in the showroom of 
the manufacturer or in the office of a customer. 
Demonstration frequently brings to light an 
essential operation overlooked in preliminary 
selection of equipment. During a demonstra¬ 
tion every detail of the job is again questioned, 
as it is performed by the machine. Particular 
emphasis, during a demonstration, should be 
placed on how the equipment handles exceptions 
to the routine. 

DO’S AND DON’TS OF 
AUTOMATION 

Perhaps, what has been said in this chapter is 
best summarized by listing some of the Do’s 
and Don’ts of source data automation. 

DO— 

• Look for repetition, volume, urgency, 

and error as clues to potential source 
data automation applications. 

• Study the system in depth. Automation 

requires precision. Machines are less 
flexible than people. Every detail of 
the system must be worked out in 
advance. Machines bind you to the 
system. 

• Study the system from birth (source) 

of data to its final resting place. 

• Consider another approach besides auto¬ 

mated equipment. 

• Remember that systems improvement 

is the objective, not necessarily auto¬ 
mation. 

• Analyze the need for the data being 

collected. Collect only data which 
will serve a purpose. 

• Remember that each field of data must 

be completely disciplined from one 
record to another, from one medium 
to another. 

• Consider necessary controls. A suitable 

source data automation system must 
contain: (1) a selected number of con¬ 
trols to assure accuracy of results; 
(2) a number of checkpoints to which 
we can return when an error is de¬ 
tected, without having to return all 
the way to the beginning of the paper¬ 
work system. 


77 


• Consider standardized coding of infor¬ 

mation. Codes must be developed for 
uniform application and each term 
must be defined to prevent miscoding 
of information. 

• Take advantage of byproduct production 

of native language media-byproduct 
to a necessary basic step in the pap¬ 
erwork system. 

• Consider training. Either develop in- 

house, on-the-job programs or arrange 
to have training conducted by the 
equipment manufacturers. 

• Conduct a trial run to debug your pro¬ 

posal. It is better to discover an error 
or overlooked item early in the game. 

• Make doubly sure that the preparation 

of input or conversion of already exist¬ 
ing data involves— 

Proper recording and validation of 
raw data. 

Proper coding of data. 

Verification of accuracy of data 
transcription. 

Periodic machine testing to detect 
malfunctions. 

• Use your Imagination. 

DON’T 

• Buy equipment first and then attempt 

to determine what to do with it. 


• Try to do the job without putting the 

facts about the present system and 
your proposal in writing. 

• Try to do the job alone. Instead get 

the cooperation of the people involved 
in the operation. 

• Over- or undermechanize, or mechanize 

for the glamour of automation. 

• Install an agencywide system over¬ 

night. Try a pilot installation first, 
installing others on a scheduled basis. 

• Look at a single step of a paperwork 

system. Instead study the whole 
system. 

• Try to carry on operations with the 

present forms. Probably all forms 
involved in the paperwork cycle will 
require revision. 

• Ignore the problems of converting ex¬ 

isting data to the native language 
you have chosen. 

• Blindly prepare the same reports used 

in the present system. 

• Ignore comments and suggestions from 

the operating personnel. 

• Buy a “pig-in-the-poke”. Instead get 

demonstration of the equipment per¬ 
forming the routine paperwork cycle 
and all the exceptions to the routine. 

• Select a medium for the native language 

without analysis of the advantages 
in relation to the specific paperwork 
system. 


78 


U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1965 O—727-995 




































Washington: 1965 

















































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